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When considering washroom remodeling, you may want to steer clear of hiring this German artist for such tasks.

Indeed, Herfeldt is an expert in handling foam materials, crafting fascinating artworks from this unlikely art material. Yet longer you look at her creations, the stronger one notices that an element feels slightly unnerving.

Those hefty strands from the foam Herfeldt forms stretch over display surfaces on which they sit, drooping off the edges below. The knotty tubular forms swell till they rupture. A few artworks leave their acrylic glass box homes fully, turning into an attractor for dust and hair. One could imagine the feedback are unlikely to earn pretty.

“I sometimes have the feeling that things are alive inside an area,” says Herfeldt. This is why I started using silicone sealant because it has such an organic feel and appearance.”

Indeed there is an element almost visceral in the artist's creations, from that protruding shape which extends, hernia-like, from its cylindrical stand at the exhibition's heart, or the gut-like spirals made of silicone that burst as if in crisis. Displayed nearby, are mounted images depicting the sculptures captured in multiple views: resembling squirming organisms seen in scientific samples, or growths in a lab setting.

I am fascinated by that there are things inside human forms taking place which possess independent existence,” Herfeldt explains. Phenomena you can’t see or command.”

Talking of unmanageable factors, the poster for the show features an image of water damage overhead in her own studio located in Berlin. Constructed built in the early 1970s and according to her, was quickly despised from residents as numerous old buildings got demolished for its development. The place was in a state of disrepair upon her – a native of that city although she spent her youth north of Hamburg before arriving in Berlin as a teenager – moved in.

This deteriorating space proved challenging to Herfeldt – it was risky to display her pieces without concern potential harm – however, it was intriguing. Lacking architectural drawings available, nobody had a clue methods to address the malfunctions that developed. Once an overhead section at the artist's area got thoroughly soaked it fell apart fully, the single remedy was to replace the panel with a new one – and so the cycle continued.

At another site, Herfeldt says dripping was extreme that a series of collection units were installed in the suspended ceiling to channel leaks to another outlet.

I understood that this place resembled an organism, an entirely malfunctioning system,” the artist comments.

These conditions brought to mind a classic film, John Carpenter’s debut movie from the seventies featuring a smart spaceship that develops independence. As the exhibition's title suggests through the heading – Alice, Laurie & Ripley – that’s not the only film shaping this exhibition. These titles indicate the leading women in the slasher film, Halloween plus the sci-fi hit respectively. She mentions an academic paper written by Carol J Clover, which identifies these surviving characters an original movie concept – women left alone to overcome.

These figures are somewhat masculine, reserved in nature and they endure because she’s quite clever,” she elaborates regarding this trope. They avoid substances or have sex. It is irrelevant the audience's identity, all empathize with the survivor.”

Herfeldt sees a similarity linking these figures with her creations – things that are just about staying put despite the pressures they face. Is the exhibition focused on cultural decay beyond merely water damage? Similar to various systems, substances like silicone that should seal and protect us from damage in fact are decaying around us.

“Oh, totally,” she confirms.

Earlier in her career with sealant applicators, she experimented with alternative odd mediums. Recent shows have involved forms resembling tongues using a synthetic material you might see on a sleeping bag or inside a jacket. Similarly, one finds the feeling these peculiar objects might animate – some are concertinaed resembling moving larvae, others lollop down off surfaces or extend through entries collecting debris from touch (Herfeldt encourages audiences to interact leaving marks on pieces). Like the silicone sculptures, those fabric pieces are also housed in – and breaking out of – cheap looking transparent cases. These are unattractive objects, and that's the essence.

“The sculptures exhibit a certain aesthetic which makes one compelled by, while also being quite repulsive,” the artist comments grinning. “It tries to be absent, but it’s actually extremely obvious.”

The artist does not create art to provide ease or aesthetically soothed. Instead, she wants you to feel uncomfortable, odd, or even humor. And if there's something wet dripping from above additionally, remember you haven’t been warned.