The Citizen
Author:Lindsey ShookMultidisciplinary artist Vanessa German is creating extraordinary work from a place of truth and love
“Art offers us the opportunity to go to the inside of ourselves, to go to the inside of the inside, to be with ourselves and these objects, ideas, sculptures, paintings and more in the intimacy of our most private places,” says the immeasurably talented, self-taught artist Vanessa German. “These are the fertile lands of change. I want to make art that gives the inside places something to hold—it is our inside places that we will use to challenge outside places.”
Raised in Los Angeles and the Midwest as a teen, German later relocated to Pittsburgh and has now landed in the mountains of North Carolina, all of which have contributed to the DNA of her work. “I was made out of Los Angeles, California; the streets, the concrete sidewalks, the beaches, the meanness and the sweet, the illuminated fibers of human language speaking the tongues of a thousand lands,” she says. “The Midwest is where I was taught about fear and provinciality—what happens when the days are small and the rivers have been polluted—then Pittsburgh taught me about the dangers of living in constant fear and the mountains taught me about the holiness of nature. All of these stories are relevant on my path.”
It is evident when reading about her many accolades and accomplishments to date that her journey as an artist reflects a deep self-awareness, an unmatched consideration of life and respect for humanity. Whether through sculpture, painting, collage, writing or performing, her storytelling explores societal injustice, historic symbolism, empathy and more. “It is not important that my art create conversation around social justice and equity. It is important that my life be lived in accordance with the universal truth that we are all here together,” German remarks. “There is only one true social justice movement and it is love. The only real conversation that I am having is with the human heart, and thus with the soul and the power of creativity. There is no other conversation that could ever be this intimate; true justice is deeply, vulnerably intimate.”
In her most recent show, featured inside Kasmin Gallery’s booth at Frieze L.A., German presented a series of a dozen rose quartz-clad sculptures accompanied by her own audio recordings of prayers that were intended to evoke love, healing and an understanding of existence. “I did not choose the rose quartz; it chose me,” she recalls. “Each object I made in the rose quartz series was covered in the full grace and magic of deep love. I made it as a love song to each human being who came into any proximity with it, because love is more powerful than any attempt I could ever make to be profound.”
