About
Monuments became a focus of my art in 2021. I was captivated by their unmistakable presence in my daily life, but at the same time, I was repelled by their seemingly unyielding permanence and the way they glorify problematic ideologies.
Franziska Windolf (b.1992) is based in Munich, Germany.
Monuments became a focus of my art in 2021. I was captivated by their unmistakable presence in my daily life, but at the same time, I was repelled by their seemingly unyielding permanence and the way they glorify problematic ideologies.
As a sculptor, I've since explored anti-monumental and performative formats, inspired by the text 'Let’s Keep Colston Falling'. My work begins with the question of how personal and collaborative memory can relate to public remembrance, examining how they intertwine and how commemoration, as an engaged and creative process, can generate, reflect, and transform how we comprehend historical time, cultural thresholds to the future, and their representations. Sculpturally, I work from the body as the literal carrier and mediator of memory work. Text, spoken word, and visual media are integral to my work, alongside the often-detailed materials I use, such as textile, bronze, and found objects.
I am currently working on four memory formats:
Handkerchief,
Patchwork,
Mapping, and
“Meet The Memory Person” (Der Erinnerungsmensch - ein performatives Monument).
I develop these works iteratively within diverse contexts—including galleries, institutional spaces, public sites, and projects in the field of cultural education.
The impetus for my work is the often-forgotten or marginalized diversity and complexity of a place or thing, which I aim to capture through historical research and conversations with various individuals and institutions within the respective project context. I’m always intrigued by the possible encounter with the creative and hopeful inner "mental monument" (Denk-Mal) of a person, their social environment, and their traces. By approaching, reflecting, activating, and building this internal monument, a space for active positioning and un-/relearning opens. This creates a space for reflection on how our identity(ies), knowledge, memories, and emotions encounter one another.
Education
2022 MA Sculpture at Royal College of Art, London.
2018 BFA Time-based media at Hochschule für Bildende Künste, Hamburg. Exchange semester at China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, and at The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen.
Selected exhibitions
2025
Voices of Memory. Brunel Shed, Buckinghamshire New University, High Wycombe, uk
Performative Walk. Day of the Open Monument, State Institute for Qualification and Quality Development in Schools. Hamburg, de
Voices of Memory. Kampus Hybernská, Prague, cz
Transformation | Fokus > Europa VI. Schafhof Europäisches Kunstforum Oberbayern, Freising, de
2024
IDENT. House of Arts, Ústí nad Labem, cz
Archived Ruptures – Ruptured Archives. Collaboration, Intervention, Resistance. Karin Sachs Gallery, Munich, de
Global Munich. In Perspective. Kammerspiele, Munich, de
Meet The Memory Person. Six performances in public space. Giesing, Munich, de
2023
Meet The Memory Person. A collaborative remembrance project. Open Studio, Workshop and Conversation. FLORIDA Lothringer 13, Munich, de
Meet The Memory Person. Six performances in public space. Giesing, Munich, de
Toolbox with Sspatz, Compound Yellow, Chicago, usa
2022
Toolbox with Sspatz, Opaf, San Pedro, usa
RCA 2022 Graduate Show, London, uk
Lapped Seams and Silver Linings, Standpoint Gallery, London, uk
We won’t stop showing, Woolwich, London, uk
Scholarships / Awards
2025
Travel grant, Department of Culture, Munich, de
2024
Steiner Stiftung, catalogue funding, Munich, de
Project funding for Meet the Memory Person from the Department of Culture, District Committee 17, and Migration Council. Munich, de
2023
Kunst für Uns!, Professional Association of Visual Artists Munich and Upper Bavaria E.V. (BBK), de
LfA Förderbank Bavaria, catalogue funding, de
Käte Hamburger Kolleg global dis:connect, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU), de
2022
Gilbert Bayes RCA Award, uk
Shortlist Kenneth Armitage Young Sculptor Award, uk
2020 – 2022
Scholarship for 2 year MA programme. German Academic Exchange Service, Bonn, de
2018 / 2019
Art School Alliance, K.H. Ditze-Stiftung, Hochschule für Bildende Künste, Hamburg, de
Erasmus+ scholarship
Exhibition exchange with the Art Department of the Goldsmiths, University of London
Residencies
2024
House of Arts, Ústí nad Labem, cz
2022-23
Artist in residence at Käte Hamburger Kolleg global dis:connect, in cooperation with the ERC-project METROMOD, LMU Munich, de
2022
Prick, Stitch, Vent & Pound, Standpoint Gallery, London, uk
Merzbau Summer School, Elterwater Merz Barn, Cumbria, uk
Talks(t)/ Workshops(w)/ Lectures(l)
Publications / Press / Texts