Maureen Paley

Michaela Eichwald creates alchemical paintings using the formal language of gestural abstraction with its often muddy palette and roughly textured surfaces, sometimes using less conventional materials instead of canvas to work on. Her work can be monumental or intimate in scale and combines multiple mediums, including oil, acrylic, and lacquer. Eichwald rejects preciousness, and her process includes exposing works to the elements, where they accumulate dirt and wear. In her sculptures small bits of found materials including food scraps, metal filings and rubbish are often suspended in resin-filled plastic gloves and bags. In both her paintings and sculptures, Eichwald’s works suggest layers of private narrative that intentionally elude explanation and form a visceral record of their creation.

b. 1967, Gummersbach, Germany lives and works in Berlin, Germany. Her work has been exhibited in numerous museums such as Kunsthalle Basel (2017); Mumok, Vienna, Kunsthalle Bern and CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Art, San Francisco (2015); MOMA New York and the 8th Berlin Biennale (2014); Kunst-Werke Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin and Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Basel (2013).