WOLFGANG STILLER | AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH
WOLFGANG STILLER
BY ARIEL SU

“I find it essential to always ensure that we don’t forget what human beings are capable of.
I feel responsible for reminding people of this not as a German but as a human being in general.”
-Wolfgang Stiller

“I started with this idea while I was living in China for two years. I was involved in a movie production doing some dummies. After finishing the production, I had those head molds sitting in my studio. So I played around with them until I got this idea for the ‘Matchstickmen.’ It was really more of an ‘accident’ than being planned right from the beginning.
The first versions were simpler and more like heads put on top of a pole the way people have done during wars in former times…
I got interested in the human head without a body as an artistic subject and tried out several possibilities over the years. The latest version of the ‘Matchstickmen’ became much more sophisticated with more details.
I use all kinds of figures from all over the world as models for my ‘Matchstickmen.’
No women, though, but this is more because of practical reasons. I always ask for bald models, and usually, the male head is bigger. So it has no hidden agenda besides being more practical. They can be interpreted in different ways. Some people read them as burnout; some find them funny or even a kind of pop art. To me, they are a metaphor for the impermanence of our human existence.
A friendly reminder that this human existence will come to an end one day. It is meant as something positive to make the most out of our lives and enjoy every moment since every moment is unique. ‘Streichholzkopf ‘ is the german word for the tip or head of a matchstick. It has a quite funny aspect in the literal sense. Many of my latest works deal with particular themes which I find in Buddhism.”

• Wolfgang Stiller

German Artist Wolfgang Stiller, b. 1961, has exhibited his work at over a hundred solo and group exhibitions around the globe. He is best known for his series “Matchstickmen” monumental matchstick sculptures with tips that resemble life-sized, charred human heads, reflecting the impermanence of our human existence. The artistic practice of Stiller encompasses different expressive forms, especially sculpture and installation. His artworks reflect his poetic way of handling all kinds of materials, giving them a face and a changing identity.

Stiller’s works of art are presented in respectable international museum collections, including at the Wuhan Museum of Fine Art in China, Museum Pfalzgalerie Kaiserslautern, and Osthaus-Museum Hagen in Germany, and in Public collections of Land Hessen and Museum Bochum in Germany, among others.
In addition, he was awarded multiple international awards for his artistic contribution. It is a great pleasure to feature an intimate, exclusive interview with such a fascinating artist.

Art Market Magazine: It’s a pleasure to interview you, Wolfgang; your work is awe-inspiring and unique. Personally, your art raises philosophical questions about humanity, way of living, death, and individual suffering. Can you share with us the background of your art creation? From where did you get the inspiration for the “matchstick heads,” for example?

Wolfgang Stiller: Thank you. It’s a pleasure having this interview. I started the “matchstickmen” series in China when I was working for a movie production about a german guy called John Rabe who saved many Chinese people during the Japanese occupation of Nanjing. I was doing fifty dummies for the background. After that production, I had those head molds sitting on my studio shelves, and I was playing around with them. While working on the movie, I was doing some research regarding the Nanjing massacre.
(The Nanjing Massacre or the Rape of Nanjing was an episode of mass murder and mass rape committed by Imperial Japanese troops against the residents of Nanjing (Nanking), at that time the capital of China, during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945).) Many people died back then by decapitation.
The first heads I mounted on bamboo poles until the idea of a human matchstick was taking shape in my mind. While I was working on them, the original idea started to change and get richer. This always happens while I am working on a project. In the beginning, it is somehow a rough thought which gets refined over time. Initially, I thought about wasted human resources when I saw those migration workers all over the world who work like crazy in terrible conditions. Since I was living and working in China back then, I used only Chinese models.
Using Chinese models didn’t mean that this was a statement about China. People get exploited all over the planet, and no matter where we go, we will find similar situations. I try not to make personal political statements in my art. I don’t want to use it as a propaganda tool. It’s not the job of art. As an artist, one always needs sources of inspiration. So I try to be open by looking around and being inspired by what life has to offer.

“The human head by itself is a very fascinating subject. I always used art as a different language to reflect upon things I was interested in. I guess that was and still is the most fascinating part for me.”.
-Wolfgang Stiller

Art Market Magazine: You grew up in Germany, and during the early 80’s you’ve studied communications design at the GHS Wuppertal, followed by art studies at the “Kunstakademie Düsseldorf” and working as a guest professor for NYU (New York University) in Shanghai, China. What important role did the years of studying communications design have and affected your success, impacted your development in the art field?

Wolfgang Stiller: I started to study communication design right away after finishing college. At that point, I had no real idea where this would lead me to. I just enjoyed drawing and painting. This education would most likely lead to a job in an advertising agency, and I had no intention to go in this direction. At this point, there were no computers, and everything had to be done by hand, so I learned some skills and focused mainly on painting and drawing. I already renovated an old loft and had a lovely studio of my own. One day a friend of mine brought a professor from Kunstakademie Düsseldorf to my studio. They saw my “potential” and convinced me to study fine art at the academy, so I changed the direction. Learning communication design education didn’t really help my career other than understanding that I wanted to work as an artist. I guess one could call that a strong impact.

Art Market Magazine: Let’s talk about your fascinating series, the “Matchstickmen,” You have mentioned that these sculptures, the figures, are a metaphor for the impermanence of our human existence. What is your personal philosophy or concerns with life’s relation to human transience?

Wolfgang Stiller: First of all, it is a fact rather than a philosophy that this body’s human existence has a due date. Thinking more deeply about this, I realized the fragility of our human life. We like to ignore the fact that we all have to die. It seems something which happens to others but not to ourselves. I want those matchstick men to be a friendly reminder that this life, this body of ours, is impermanent, and since we don’t know how long our lifespan will be, we should try to make the most out of every moment. It is somehow scary not to know when our personal time is up – therefore, we should make the most out of it. Some people consider my work negative or dark, but I can’t see it this way. I want to encourage people to reflect on life – how can that be negative?
I actually don’t consider my human figures specifically male. They represent human beings in general. There is also the theory that artists tend to create figures which relate to their own body shape. A skinny guy like Alberto Giacometti made quite skinny figures. If I were a female artist, I might use female figures. I am not trying to make any statement on gender. My figures just represent humans. That’s it.

Art Market Magazine: You have mentioned that many of your work and your artistic approach, in general, are strongly influenced by Buddhism from the time you have spent living in China, Still, In your well-known artwork, “The star of David” from 2013 (Star of David, 2013 Wood, polyurethane, paint. 98 2/5 × 98 2/5 × 17 7/10 in 250 × 250 × 45 cm ), we see a very Jewish Symbolic sculpture. With your family roots in Germany and the philosophical idea behind the “matchstick men” series, I assume there’s a deeper meaning than only the visual.
Will you please share with us the meaning of the sculpture?

Wolfgang Stiller:
This work belongs to a series called “Memorials.” In my opinion, most memorials are too abstract to actually evoke memories or feelings regarding certain horrific events in history. The best example is the enormous Jewish memorial in Berlin. A bunch of concrete blocks that are supposed to represent the atrocities of the Holocaust. In reality, young kids sitting on these blocks hanging out with friends having a beer. That’s not what I would consider a memorial.
I created works about the Nanjing Massacre, the Holocaust, the Christian crusades, the abuse of the Swastika.
A memorial should really shake the viewer’s heart to a certain degree; otherwise, I don’t see the necessity for it. Regarding the “Star of David,”
I get very different reactions from Jewish people. One person who wrote an article about it was really touched, especially since it is made by a German artist. Others, like a curator, got really offensive and told me I would regret it for the rest of my life if I would ever show the work in Israel. He wasn’t even interested in why I created the artwork.
Art is about communication. There is nothing one can do if people are not really interested in a dialog. I was born in Germany twenty years after those horrible events.
So I didn’t witness any of this in person, but I find it essential to always ensure that we don’t forget what human beings are capable of. I feel responsible for reminding people of this not as a German but as a human being in general.

Art Market Magazine: Your sculptures are being created to reflect rough, strong emotions related to humanity’ and individual position in our society. Where does this need come from? Did it come from your personal criticism about our culture and human behavior in history?

Wolfgang Stiller: Every artist needs to have a reason to create a work. For some, it might be the color red, a beautiful garden like Monet, some historical event, the interest in form, and so on.
I use art to reflect on things I am interested in. Since I am a sculptor, finding a language to reflect upon those subjects of interest is challenging. Those subjects of interest have changed over the past forty years of my career. I don’t think I would like to see them as criticism rather than research and questioning things I experience or hear about. I can’t stress one point enough: I, as an artist, need a reason to start working, but it doesn’t mean the work has to be read-only in this way. Fine art always needs the active approach of the audience since it can’t evoke emotions easily. I always envy musicians for their ability to be able to to do this right away. Too often, artworks are seen as a riddle with only one solution. I always count on the creativity of the audience.

Art Market Magazine: Which artists or artistic periods would you say have influenced your work?

Wolfgang Stiller: When I was a student, it was Francis Bacon and Giacometti. Then also the Arte Povera movement and Joseph Beuys. Especially the Arte Povera with its affinity for materials. Bacon and Giacometti were inspiring in terms of their carelessness about the trends in art in their time. They just followed their own ideas.
I am never influenced directly by particular events or daily political issues. Political issues can change quickly and become irrelevant for the next generation or even in the next month. In my opinion, art should focus on timeless subjects which will always be relevant. Who cares about an artwork against Trump in fifty years from now. As I said earlier, I really dislike using art as a propaganda tool, whether left or right.

Art Market Magazine: You are using various materials in your work, bronze, massive wood blocks, polyurethane, etc. At which point during the workflow, you decide about the suitable material? Can you describe your workflow from the idea to the final step of the ready artwork?

Wolfgang Stiller: Well, there are two different approaches I have. In the first case, I have an idea and think which material would be the best to express this idea. Then, I would make several tests with different materials or try to use them in an unorthodox way. I like to use the material in a way the material usually is not connected with, like my wax sculptures which look like frozen objects. We typically associate wax with heat, melting, candles, and so on. Once I am happy with the direction and have decided on a specific material, I execute the work in my studio, or when I choose to do a bronze, I will give it to the bronze foundry. The other approach is dictated by certain materials I find by accident. The material almost demands a specific outcome, and I just have to follow my intuition and create content while working on it.

Art Market Magazine: You have started exhibiting your work in the early ’80s, which gives you tremendous experience. What is your opinion about the developments and changes in the art market field since you’ve started your journey?

Wolfgang Stiller: That’s a vast subject and depends on which aspect you want to look at. For sure, it changed massively since I started in the 80s. First of all, the internet made it possible that my works can be seen everywhere in the world, which means the market for my work is not just a domestic one but the entire world.
It was hard to find a gallery in the US for me as a German artist back then when you haven’t been really successful in your own country yet. Another significant improvement is all the art fairs those days, which also introduce my work to a very international audience which is terrific since many people don’t like to buy a work by just seeing a photo. Besides that, social media is a tremendous factor in promoting the work of an artist. Back then, I had to send out pictures of my works to museums and galleries, not being sure if they ended in the trash bin. It was expensive, and the outcome quite vague. These days one just needs to send a well-done portfolio as a pdf to galleries, museums.
It costs nothing to prepare it, but some hours of work on the computer. The internet has been a real game-changer for promoting and selling artworks. I am a sculptor and installation artist. These new digital artworks and NFT don’t really attract me. Maybe in the future, who knows…

Art Market Magazine: Your work is in the collection of some of the most respectable museums worldwide, including at the Wuhan museum of fine art, China, Pfalzgalerie Kaiserslautern museum in Germany, Museum Beelden aan Zee, Scheveningen in the Netherland, among others. You have exhibited in countless solo exhibitions around the globe, and you are represented by excellent galleries in the US, London, and Germany. This is an outstanding achievement. From your experience, what advice (or recommended actions) can you share with the young artists who are starting their journey in the art market field?

Wolfgang Stiller: First of all, I would tell them to just focus on their art and not the business aspect of it. When you are young, you can do jobs on the side to make a living. So many young artists want to become rich and famous right away, which is deadly for their art. I am sure that good quality will be recognized at some point. Too many young people produce just stuff for the art market, which will have absolutely no value in ten or twenty years.
So my advice is just to focus on your art.
It is essential to document the works in the highest possible quality. Sending out portfolios to museums and galleries, going to openings, and connecting with the collectors and art lovers. These are all important things a young artist has to do. The internet is an excellent tool for research-which gallery might be a good match. There is a fine balance between being too shy and being too pushy as an artist.
Just staying in the studio doing only your work is not enough. An artist has to learn to promote the work if the intention is to make a living. Also, the art world is constantly changing, and I am not really paying attention to all this NFT stuff. So things might work differently in the future.

Read the full article on Art Market Magazine Issue #64