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Should you be thinking about washroom remodeling, it might be wise to steer clear of hiring the sculptor to handle it.

Certainly, Herfeldt is an expert with a silicone gun, creating compelling creations with a surprising medium. However the more examine the artworks, the stronger it becomes apparent that something seems somewhat off.

Those hefty strands of sealant Herfeldt forms extend beyond display surfaces supporting them, sagging off the edges below. The knotty tubular forms bulge till they rupture. Certain pieces leave the display cases entirely, evolving into a magnet for grime and particles. Let's just say the feedback would not be positive.

“I sometimes have the feeling that things possess life inside an area,” states Herfeldt. “That’s why I came to use this substance as it offers this very bodily sensation and look.”

Certainly one can detect somewhat grotesque regarding the artist's creations, including the phallic bulge which extends, hernia-like, from its cylindrical stand in the centre of the gallery, to the intestinal coils from the material that burst as if in crisis. Along a surface, the artist presents photocopies of the works seen from various perspectives: appearing as wormy parasites seen in scientific samples, or formations on a petri-dish.

“It interests me is the idea inside human forms occurring that seem to hold independent existence,” Herfeldt explains. Elements that are invisible or manage.”

Regarding things she can’t control, the exhibition advertisement promoting the event displays a picture showing a dripping roof within her workspace located in Berlin. It was made in the seventies as she explains, was quickly despised among the community as numerous old buildings got demolished for its development. By the time dilapidated as the artist – who was born in Munich but grew up near Hamburg prior to moving to the capital during her teens – moved in.

The rundown building was frustrating for the artist – placing artworks was difficult the sculptures anxiously risk of ruin – yet it also proved intriguing. Without any blueprints on hand, nobody had a clue methods to address any of the issues that arose. Once an overhead section in Herfeldt’s studio became so sodden it fell apart fully, the only solution meant swapping the panel with a new one – and so the cycle continued.

At another site, Herfeldt says the leaking was so bad that several collection units were installed above the false roof in order to redirect the water to a different sink.

“I realised that the building was like a body, an entirely malfunctioning system,” Herfeldt states.

These conditions evoked memories of a classic film, the initial work movie from the seventies featuring a smart spaceship that takes on a life of its own. As the exhibition's title suggests through the heading – Alice, Laurie & Ripley – more movies have inspired impacting the artist's presentation. Those labels refer to the leading women from a horror classic, another scary movie plus the sci-fi hit respectively. The artist references a critical analysis from a scholar, outlining these surviving characters an original movie concept – women left alone to triumph.

They often display toughness, rather quiet enabling their survival due to intelligence,” says Herfeldt about such characters. “They don’t take drugs or engage intimately. It is irrelevant who is watching, we can all identify with the survivor.”

She draws a parallel from these protagonists to her artworks – things that are just about staying put amidst stress they’re under. Does this mean the art really concerning societal collapse than just dripping roofs? Because like so many institutions, such components meant to insulate and guard against harm are actually slowly eroding around us.

“Absolutely,” says Herfeldt.

Prior to discovering her medium with sealant applicators, the artist worked with alternative odd mediums. Recent shows featured tongue-like shapes made from fabric similar to found in in insulated clothing or in coats. Once more, there's the feeling these strange items might animate – some are concertinaed resembling moving larvae, others lollop down from walls or spill across doorways collecting debris from touch (The artist invites viewers to touch leaving marks on pieces). As with earlier creations, the textile works are similarly displayed in – and breaking out of – budget-style transparent cases. The pieces are deliberately unappealing, and really that’s the point.

“These works possess a specific look which makes one very attracted to, while also appearing gross,” the artist comments amusedly. “It attempts to seem not there, however, it is very present.”

Herfeldt is not making pieces that offer comfortable or visual calm. Instead, she aims for unease, strange, maybe even amused. But if you start to feel a moist sensation overhead as well, don’t say you haven’t been warned.