vanessa german: GUMBALL—there is absolutely no space between body and soul
April 3 – May 10, 2025 509 West 27th Street, New York, 514 West 28th Street, New York

  • Kasmin presents its second solo exhibition of new work by artist vanessa german (b. 1976), which debuts related bodies of sculpture across two of the gallery’s spaces in New York. GUMBALL—there is absolutely no space between body and soul deepens german’s singular approach to sculpture as a spiritual practice with the power to transform lived experience. Both series comprise mineral crystals, beads, porcelain, wood, paint and the energy that these objects bring to life to form monumental heads and figures in the act of falling. Together, each body of work envisions the transformation of consciousness necessary to imagine a new world. 

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  • vanessa german GUMBALL, or, Gloriously Underestimated Magical Bounty As Living Love. Or, An Invitation to Contemplation at the pace of...
    vanessa german
    GUMBALL, or, Gloriously Underestimated Magical Bounty As Living Love. Or, An Invitation to Contemplation at the pace of One’s own Divine Soul., 2025
    gemstones and minerals: tigers eye, onyx, obsidian, rose quartz, morganite, lapis, aragonite, citrine, agate, dyed jade, titanium heated geode, spirit quartz. Cut glass crystal, fish key chains, a love song to the Soul of it all, a house in which to grow wise in a manner with allows no violation to the being, wood, hand blown glass gumball, ceramic figurine, pink prayer beads, prayers of grace and the intimacy of loneliness giving into the knowing of deep and true wholeness, light, astroturf, joyous angelic presence, the levity of the Buddha— HA HA. Love, memories of my grandmother, plaster, plaster guaze, cardboard, obsidian lucky foot, 3-4 bags of my/the artist’s recycling, a laying on of hands and a release into the grace of being held outside of one’s own mind, joy, ceramic butterflies, the way that black girls— in my youth— could speak their own language by chewing and popping gum, beaded flowers, hope, newness, porcelain tile, slow down, it’s going to be ok.
    87 x 47 1/2 x 43 1/2 inches
    221 x 120.7 x 110.5 cm
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  • In the gallery’s flagship 509 West 27th Street location, german unveils a new series of monumental heads. Incorporating images of stars, words, numbers, animals and human forms, german conceives of these sculptures as cosmic maps, proposing a cartography for a sacred place that embraces the full creative potential of all people. Each sculpture reflects the shimmer of lapis, rose quartz, clear quartz, onyx, obsidian, and other natural stones that harness healing properties. Ahead of this body of work, the subject of the head engrossed german’s creative spirit in a number of watercolors and preparatory sketches on paper. The works recall the substantial weight of the Olmec heads of ancient Mesoamerica, which german cites as a source of inspiration, furthering a direction she explored in a work for her 2024 solo exhibition at the University of Chicago’s Logan Center for the Arts.
  • vanessa german bring light in through the top of your head, 2025 wood, plaster, ,foam, plaster gauze, sweet kisses, love,...
    vanessa german
    bring light in through the top of your head, 2025
    wood, plaster, ,foam, plaster gauze, sweet kisses, love, gold chain purse, rose quartz butterflies, the sound of horns honking out of the hotel window, cut glass, lucky feet in rose quartz from the window of the eye, have faith.
    79 x 51 x 43 inches
    200.7 x 129.5 x 109.2 cm
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  • vanessa german the monumental scribble, 2025 the mysteries of existence in a realm of impermanence, wood, plaster, plaster gauze, foam,...
    vanessa german
    the monumental scribble, 2025
    the mysteries of existence in a realm of impermanence, wood, plaster, plaster gauze, foam, obsidian beads, onyx beads, beaded glass trim, love, the union between heart and mind, the opposite of self loathing, the greatness of just being here, marble tile, red glass beads, cut glass, prisms, quilt top, the shirt that the artist wore while making this work: buy weed from women, black beaded trim, the end of the idea that having the most money will keep death from your doorstep, the anxiety of social media, a drawing of your own face that you scribble on as though to say: make it better of make it all go away, healing love, truth, pain, magic, loving love.
    76 x 46 1/2 x 41 inches
    193 x 118.1 x 104.1 cm
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  • german’s intuitive gathering of colors, symbols, words and numbers resemble painted marks that offer prayer and wellness to viewers, magnified by the works’ colossal presence. The silhouette of a hand, or an anatomical diagram of a heart, reflect her engagement with the human form and its capacity for connection. Certain heads reflect german’s recent introduction of numerology to her practice. These include sequences of numbers, such as the date “3-6-2025,” documenting the day german began to adorn the head’s surface. The appearance of words such as “LOVER” or “I SEE YOU” acknowledge the works’ relationship to their viewers and demonstrate the artist’s commitment to love as an infinite human technology.
  • vanessa german the siddhi of the soul, 2025 rose quartz, wood, plaster, plaster gauze, the shine of the full moon...
    vanessa german
    the siddhi of the soul, 2025
    rose quartz, wood, plaster, plaster gauze, the shine of the full moon on my mother’s face while saving my sister’s life, pyrite, joy, the ecstasy of creativity, marble tile, astroturf, for how it is to know that you are but a splinter of the whole and also entirely whole the same time, a revelation of lapis, citrine, the way that clouds are creative, a loosing against old ways of power, a healing song sung just of breath and now-ness, amethyst, 3 quilts and the love of jill and Dev, the hands of dev, the hands of jordan, the hands of our collective soul, strawberry quartz, fish key chains, a mammy creamer in the eye, hematite, butterflies made by the artist, a muse against cruelty, for how it is to be alive inside of this holy soul, magic.
    65 x 36 1/2 x 36 1/2 inches
    165.1 x 92.7 x 92.7 cm
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  • vanessa german the midnight alligator’s daughter, or, where we are and what we’ve been, will be no situation upon where...
    vanessa german
    the midnight alligator’s daughter, or, where we are and what we’ve been, will be no situation upon where we go and what we shall become.  , 2025
    Light! Light! Light! Gemstones: onyx, obsidian, black tourmaline, shungite, lapis, agate, Smokey quartz, amethyst, morganite,turquoise, turquoise dyed howlite, titanium dyed geodes, pearl.
    Found lamp, cut glass beads, wood, plaster, plaster gauze, a prayer for the softening of hands, a knowing of the origin songs of the Soul, a heated gaze in the face of meanness, blacked coke bottles, carved alligator, glass prisms, awake! Awake! Awake! The soft night, the awakened dawn, a dying away of old places, beaded glass trim, cardboard, recycling, silicone
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  • vanessa german the emergence, or, on considering the transformative nature of the dragon fly as told by Richard Rudd. ,...
    vanessa german
    the emergence, or, on considering the transformative nature of the dragon fly as told by Richard Rudd. , 2025
    we dance here don’t we bend out our bones and loose our spirts free in an agreement of birth and suffering, wood, plaster, plaster gauze, lapis, sodalite, blue kyanite, quartz, rose quartz, dyed howlite, turquoise, bottles, blue things at the bottom of the sea, languishing, morganite, blue amber eye bee— for seeing the unseen inside of your own self, the deep grief of it all , the light from the wound, blue pigments, a white snake for transformation, a solid fearlessness, grace, onyx, obsidian, rhinestones, cut glass, a host of possibilities, magic and loving that keeps making itself new, over and over again.
    64 x 40 x 38 inches
    162.6 x 101.6 x 96.5 cm
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  • vanessa german you own soul is a true magic, 2025 wood, marble tile, love, red glass beads, rose quartz, onyx,...
    vanessa german
    you own soul is a true magic, 2025
    wood, marble tile, love, red glass beads, rose quartz, onyx, obsidian, shungite, Smokey quartz, lapis, agate, candelabras, joy, a found wooden foot, ceramic birds, pyrite, sodalite, emerald with quartz, black beaded text, sitting down in the soul for a made-up song, mirror, amethyst, beaded key chains from guatamala, astroturf, agate, morganite, creativity as antidote, silence, dancing, forgiveness.
    70 x 43 x 36 1/4 inches
    177.8 x 109.2 x 92.1 cm
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  • vanessa german for the mother’s who lost their children and never found them, 2025 found branch, wood, plaster, plaster gauze,...
    vanessa german
    for the mother’s who lost their children and never found them, 2025
    found branch, wood, plaster, plaster gauze, beaded glas trim, cut glass, hematite, geodes, the mineral world teaching us a humility undone from human time, the grief settling in for a long run, the sound of women screaming in a rubble bound wilderness of use-to-be’s, grace, the mercy of recognizing that there is no separation, you only have what you give, 64 gene keys, blue for how we are the ocean and the single drop if it all at the same time, wail why don’t you, heat, love, the burden and bounty of the vagina, freedom, being seen against the unseeing, rubber glove molds, royal blue chainette, the effort of it all, holiness and doubt, the blood of your womb and no child to show for it, if a child asks you to play, stop what you are doing and play with them, for the mothers, the primordial mother, for the chest of hope that keeps filling itself with breath, foam, magic, light and a revenge-less reality.
    72 1/2 x 36 x 40 1/2 inches
    184.2 x 91.4 x 102.9 cm
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  • vanessa german lover, lover, lover boi, 2025 arm trans women, existence cannot be non-existence, get over it, love, love, love,...
    vanessa german
    lover, lover, lover boi, 2025
    arm trans women, existence cannot be non-existence, get over it, love, love, love, wood, plaster, plaster gauze, bottle cap chain, forgiveness, clear quartz, cut glass, titanium dyed geodes, onyx, obsidian, shungite, Smokey quartz, beaded glass trim, the grief always, the opposite of self loathing, a Native American beaded hat from a trading post near what we now call, “the Grand Canyon.” Heat, starlight, the dance of all ages, kissing and fucking for the peace and joy of it all, anatomical heart model, mammy note pad body with original pencil, cut glass ring holder, quartz points from the land we now call, “Arkansas”, cowboy salt shaker, a snake for the bite and shrugging off of the passage of time. 
    77 x 31 x 34 inches
    195.6 x 78.7 x 86.4 cm
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  • At 514 West 28th Street, german presents a related series of “fallen figures” that are each caught in a dip (also known as a death drop), a move performed by vogue dancers and originating in ballroom culture. Capturing the drama of the pose, the figures balance on one leg as the other kicks into the air, giving the impression they are falling downward. They are installed on a runway that extends from the gallery wall, recalling the ballroom competitions where the move originated—a sacred place where creativity has flourished in the face of structural violence, exploitation, and injustice.
  • vanessa german sweet love, or THE HUNGER OF IT ALL IS EATING ME UP, or, ACIM lesson #28 and #31,...
    vanessa german
    sweet love, or THE HUNGER OF IT ALL IS EATING ME UP, or, ACIM lesson #28 and #31, respectively: Above all else, I want to see things differently. I am not a victim of the world I see., 2025
    a wondrous muse of light, wood, doll parts, cloth, twine, how it feels to be swallowed whole and then to come out the other end wet and brand new, the spice of life, wire, beads, beaded glass trim, spray paint, strange pot metal black figure with a mouth open wide in a wail or an attempt to swallow the universe, porcelain figurine being swallowed whole, the tension of the having or not having or being had, the way that n it even greed can thwart death, pyrite phallus, chain, rhinestone, the blackness
    36 x 24 x 14 inches
    91.4 x 61 x 35.6 cm
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  • vanessa german Grief Monster Realness/trying to keep up, or, ACIM Lesson 25: I do not know what anything is for.,...
    vanessa german
    Grief Monster Realness/trying to keep up, or, ACIM Lesson 25: I do not know what anything is for., 2025
    not-gold things & the weight of it all, the extraction and mining of _______, and then there is the dance of the heart, grace, precious porcelain things, how it feels to be alive, the experience of being alive, the aliveness of knowing that you are alive and that you will not be so forever, wood, plaster, plaster gauze, watches that make it look like you keep time while you are being kept by time, the hero’s journey, a song that makes your heart beat fast enough to make it feel like nothing can touch you, spray paint, love, the circle.
    32 x 22 x 14 inches
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  • vanessa german Deathfall of the Empire in Red, or, ACIM lesson #3: I do not understand anything I see in...
    vanessa german
    Deathfall of the Empire in Red, or, ACIM lesson #3: I do not understand anything I see in this room, (on this street, through this window, in this place.), 2025
    she is red.she sees red.she bleeds red. She reads you red. She is falling she is falling she is falling— she is not dying.she is showing you how cute the death is. She is wood.she is glass beads. She is a tea towel cross stitched to tell the story of a gleeful labor; she is theater. She is falling down and she is not dying. She is cloth, twine, plaster and plaster gauze. She is holding her tongue. She is healed through the wound she is light. She is taking down the empire one spin at a time. She is spinning. She is spinning. She is old uncut car keys. She is a forgiveness so bold that it is original as air. She is graceful. She is a weapon and a hospital. She gazes up. She falls and she does not die.
    34 1/2 x 24 x 14 1/2 inches
    87.6 x 61 x 36.8 cm
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  • These sculptures’ heads are replaced with porcelain figurines of racist caricatures in the act of reclaiming power from their white counterparts. Described by the artist as an allusion to the fall of empire, the works foreground the creative potential found in their subjects’ resilience. While the fall down gives the illusion of death, the figures are inevitably poised to rebound upward, empowered by their expression. Each fallen figure rises like a phoenix from the ashes, ushering in the atmosphere of renewal found in the series of heads.
  • vanessa german Marshmallows, or, ACIM lesson # 27: above all else I want to see, 2025 white things; cups, beads,...
    vanessa german
    Marshmallows, or, ACIM lesson # 27: above all else I want to see, 2025
    white things; cups, beads, rhinestones, clear quartz, doll parts, wood, plaster, plaster gauze, wire, twine, porcelain figurines, the falling, the bouncing, the weight of it all offering you release into your own wilderness, how the dive bar in M’s basement is a secret hideout, laughing, resurrection, dancing instead of ______, non-compliance as self-expression, clear quartz points, hope as a matter of creativity, jewelry bits, silver plated chain, beaded glass trim, coming undone, being whole the whole time and somehow being convinced against this, the truth is always the truth.
    37 x 22 x 12 inches
    94 x 55.9 x 30.5 cm
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    • vanessa german, DANCE, BITCH, OR ELSE! Or, ACIM lessons #16 and #17: I have no neutral thoughts. I see no neutral things., 2025
      vanessa german, DANCE, BITCH, OR ELSE! Or, ACIM lessons #16 and #17: I have no neutral thoughts. I see no neutral things., 2025
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    • vanessa german, George—at the precipice of the fall, 2025
      vanessa german, George—at the precipice of the fall, 2025
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    • vanessa german, Dainty White Things Wrapped in Black Cotton, or, THE TAKE OVER. Or, ACIM lesson #5: I am never upset for the reason I think., 2025
      vanessa german, Dainty White Things Wrapped in Black Cotton, or, THE TAKE OVER. Or, ACIM lesson #5: I am never upset for the reason I think., 2025
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  • About the Artist

    vanessa german
    Portrait by Charlie Rubin.

    vanessa german

    vanessa german’s artistic practice incorporates sculpture, drawing, performance, and communal ritual to embrace spiritual models for transforming human experience. Since joining Kasmin in 2021, german has presented a solo exhibition at the gallery (2022) and solo presentations at Frieze Los Angeles (2024) and the Independent Art Fair (2022). Her work is collected by museums across the country, and has been acquired by over a dozen museums since 2021. She has staged major exhibitions at the NSU Art Museum, Ft. Lauderdale, FL (2024-25); Logan Center for the Arts at the University of Chicago (2024); The National Mall, Washington, DC (2023); Montclair Art Museum, Montclair, NJ (2023); Mt. Holyoke Art Museum, South Hadley, MA (2022-23) and other museums across the country. She has received numerous accolades over the course of her career including a Heinz Award in 2022, and her practice has been hailed in The New York Times, Forbes, Hyperallergic, The Brooklyn Rail and elsewhere. Her work was included in the publications Great Women Sculptors (Phaidon) and Project A Black Planet: The Art and Culture of Panafrica (Art Institute of Chicago) in 2024.

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