Till Mayer

1eigentlich als architekt und bildhauer ausgebildet, arbeitet till mayer seit ueber 15 jahren als designer und manufakteur von individuellen innen- und aussenraumloesungen.

bei seiner arbeit liegt der fokus immer auf dem versuch, ausgehend von einer spezifischen raeumlichen situation, entsprechend spezifische antworten zu finden. dabei werden diese aus den persoenlichen wuenschen und beduerfnissen des kunden entwickelt.

wenn es gelingt, beruht das ergebnis auf der synthese obiger faktoren, der eigenen ideenwelt und der integritaet der verwendeten materialien.


seit 2009 ausfuehrung von um–und ausbauten im innen–und aussenbereich | design und manufaktur von holzeinrichtung und lampen in Berlin

2010 ausstellung <stored reminiscence> skulpturen und bilder | galerie berliner ursprung

2009 umzug mit familie nach berlin

seit 1998–2009 auftraege fuer design und ausfuehrung von ein- und ausbauten in Kapstadt und umgebung, daneben architektur und skulpturen aus holz

1999 <art switch> symposion der friedrich naumann stiftung in lauenburg mit anschliessender ausstellung von skulptur und zeichnung

1999 <H2O> gruppenausstellung von skulptur in kapstadt | oude molen village

1998 <in the bud> gruppenshow von malpitte inkapstadt | oude molen village

1997 <vital functions> einzelausstellung von skulpturen und zeichnungen in der mau mau gallery |kapstadt seit ende

1996 wohnt und arbeitet in kapstadt | suedafrika 1995–96 reise durch afrika

1995 diplom architektur an der tuberlin

seit 1988 eigenes atelier fuer bildhauerei in berlin

1988 meisterschueler bildhauerei bei joachim schmettau | hdk berlin

1979–81 studium architektur an der th darmstadt

1959 geboren in freiburg
 

1trained as an architect and sculptor, till mayer has work ed for over 15 years as designer and manufacturer of custom designed and crafted interior and exterior solutions.

based on individual spatial situations as a starting point and taking into account personal customer wishes and requirements, his focus is on finding answers which do justice to both. a successful outcome is owed to above factors, his own form language and the integrity of materials employed.


since 2009 execution of alterations and upgrading of buildings, interiors and exteriors, design and manufacture of lights in Berlin

2010 exhibition <stored reminiscence> sculpture and drawing, gallery berliner ursprung

2009 relocation with family to berlin

1998–2009 commissions for various designs and alteration projects in Kapstadt involving custom-made interiors

1999 <artswitch> symposion with southafrican and german artists in lauenburg, germany exhibition of sculpture and drawing

1999 <H2O>group show with sculpture cape town, oude molen village

1998 <in the bud> group show of malpitte cape town, oude molen village

1997 <vital functions> solo show with sculpture and drawings mau mau gallery cape town, south africa

1996 living and working in cape town, south africa

1995–96 one year's trip through the african continent

1995 diploma in architecture at the tu berlin, germany

1988 own studio for sculpture in berlin

1988 sculpture master student of joachim schmettau, hdk berlin

1979–81 studies of architecture at the th in darmstadt, germany

1959 born in freiburg, germany

 

28.04.98 mail & guardian cape town article <knotty spaces> by hermann wittenberg

On show in Cape Town

If you’ve recently seen too many clever installations, provocative experimental exhibitions or deeply relevant conceptual art, take a look at Till Mayer’s remarkable sculptural works at Cape Town’s Mau Mau Gallery.

Vital Functions is an exhibition of wooden sculptures which not only display an unusual technical virtuosity but arealso strikingly beautiful. The pieces are above all tactile: they ask to be touched, stroked, picked up and weighed in the hands.

Mayer does breathtaking things with wood. Always only using a single large block for each sculpture, he pushes the possiblities of a notoriously difficult medium to the limit. In a weirdly titled piece called Van Gogh’s Ear, a huge mahogany block is reduced to the intricately twisting, sinuous flow of delicate forms. Here, as in several other pieces, the massive solidity of the wooden block is opened up, thereby creating an interplay between the surface of the material and its interior spaces.

Most of the sculptures reflect an intriguing tension between, on the one side, solidity and volume, and on the other, hollowness and interiority. For example in Life Span, a piece fashioned out of blackwood, the entire centre has been hollowed out, leaving finely polished wooden ribs enclosing an interior space. Similarly in Inner Tree, the hollowing-out produces not only gaps and holes but extends the outer surfaces into the centre.

On the other hand, pieces such as Mouthpiece or Butterfly’s Birth appear completely solid, with only the titles hinting at an unseen interiority. This theme can also be seen in the Basic Objects, a collection of smaller hand-sized pieces scattered across the gallery floor like driftwood. At first glance they look solid, but contain hidden spaces filled with nuts, bobs and bits. Pick them up, and you find out that each one is a rattle with its own distinctive sound.

None of the sculptures represent recognizable human figures or natural shapes, but you can find subtle hints ofvarious life forms. Elements such as curves, hollows, domes and spheres constitute an underlying organic sculptural register, underscored by titles such as Procreation and Symbiosis.

The sculptures are interspersed with a series of charcoal and pencil drawings. You’d be forgiven for wondering if theywere by the same artist, as they don’t mesh easily with the wood. An exception is a series of 20 smaller photocopied pencil drawings. As with the sculptures, they play with depth and perspective, and out of the interplay of jagged lines emerge hints of various organic forms.

In case you’re wondering about the photocopies, Mayer thinks that they actually improve the originals. For those people discomforted by the notion of simulacral art, he has included the originals inside the clipframes.

Mayer has had a varied career. He studied fine art as well as architecture in Berlin and has practised as an architect and as a free-lance sculptor. In the past he has worked extensively with marble in Carrara, but his present obsession with wood owes more to Africa than to Italy. He spent more than a year travelling the continent and, although disappointed with the touristy quality of much contemporary wood sculpture, was profoundly influenced by the astonishing wood-craft techniques of African artists. “Everything possible in the medium,” he claims, “has already been done in Africa.”

In the past, he preferred the predictability of stone and was irritated with wood as a sculptural medium: a crack, hole or knot would appear in the wrong place and disturb the overall design. His present work shows that he no longer regards these features as problems but as strengths which, if skillfully integrated, can become the focal point of the piece.

“If something tears and breaks,” he believes, “it usually improves the final form, it gives it complexity. You’ve got to take your knot hole and use it in such a way that it becomes essential.”

kontakt - fon: 0049 (0)160 9414 1502empty email: till.m.mayer@gmail.com
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