The recognition of the sixth Loth Sculpture Prize is bestowed upon both the Art Affair Gallery (Regensburg) and the artist Andreas Blank.

The decision to award this prize was made by an expert jury, who justified their selection as follows: “Andreas Blank distinguishes himself through a precise yet playful approach to his work, shaping moments of insight from the hardness of stone. The materials and fabrics of his works initially appear authentic, yet it is the trompe-l’oeil effect that defines the strength of his installation at art KARLSRUHE. Whether it’s men’s shirts, bottles, wood, or leather boots – everything is chiseled and polished from marble, granite, alabaster, or other stones. Even the pedestals are an integral part of his concept, characterized by wit and subtlety in the constant tension between life and death.

From his earliest sculpture, the shaft boots carved in black stone symbolizing his grandfather from World War II, now resting in a Nazi-brown stone box, to the stacked tower of materials made from already worked stones with a skull placed on top – Andreas Blank underwent a long and persistent creative process.

Although he left the Karlsruhe Academy and has long studied in London, he finds inspiration in both the everyday and the cultures of both cities. The smooth folded, snow-white marble shirt and the deceptively real black briefcase underneath are ironic allusions that, despite their uncompromising symbolism, provoke reflection.

Here is a sculptor at work who directly immerses us in his artistic perception of the real world with its social framework. Where the irony of the viewer, the consumers of these monumental works, transitions into a thoughtful learning process is a question that arises.

Blank’s objects are both jewels and provocations. Through the tension between nature/stone and culture/object, objects have emerged through the artist’s intellectual and practical intervention, which he has united into a convincing installation in the sculpture square.

When, as intended by the artist, one steps onto the white marble step that allows a view at eye level of the white marble skull, and when one considers the still unfinished plate and stone stockpile with overturned support blocks, thoughts of finiteness and leaving things unfinished inevitably come to the forefront – perhaps a reminder of the vanitas symbolism of the Baroque.

In any case, it is an impressive interaction of the works and their themes in the sculpture square of the Art Affair Gallery in Regensburg.