Sally von Rosen (b. Gothenburg, Sweden, 1994) is based in Berlin. She graduated with her master in fine arts from Umeå Academy of Fine arts and the Academy of Fine arts Vienna (2019). She has a bachelor in Philosophy from Gothenburg University and in Graphics from Valand Academy. For 2022, her most recent solo exhibition took place at Hall Gallery (Gothenburg), with recent group exhibitions at institutions such as Kunstfort bij Vijfhuizen (Amsterdam), Kunstbruecke am Wildenburch (Berlin), and Kunstraum Kreuzberg/Bethanien (Berlin).

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Sally von Rosen's artistic practice is defined by the (im)material. Her performances, objects and sculptures seem to come from another time or from another world, navigating between raw and slick, between desirable and dangerous. They seem to remind us of things we know, but yet they can't really be classified in our perception. Are they things or objects that refer to living beings? Are they alive? Why are we even asking these questions?

Text excerpt by Sylvia Sadzinski

The sculptures by Sally von Rosen are made to be performed with; animated through the movement of the human body. Von Rosen is more interested in how objects can exert force upon humans and their social interactions than focussing on the human experience per se—inspired by Jane Bennet’s Vibrant Matter. A Political Ecology of Things (2010), for her, there is no real distinction between subjects and objects. Rather there is a web of materials - an animated matter that competes, forms alliances that initiates new processes. The performative sculptures come to a standstill, allowing the viewer to take a closer look at their composition. The artist falls back upon natural forms for the sculpture’s shapes, which she then transforms into consumerist products. Though the colors used are soft and powdery, the sculptures come with claws, horns, thorns, and fangs, making them as desirable and dangerous at once.

Text by Sigrid Hermann