Interview with Nina Bienefeld

By way of introduction, would you like to tell us a few words about yourself? What is your name? Where are you from and what do you do?
My name is Nina Bienefeld, I am a curator and gallery owner who grew up on the Lower Rhine. After studying visual communication in Aachen, I moved to Düsseldorf. I've lived here with my family on Fürstenplatz for 20 years.

In your opinion, to what extent do works for "out there" differ from works for galleries and other indoor spaces?
Works in urban spaces are not planned for the long term. Will the house with the mural still be standing next year, will someone have pictures or tags removed from the house wall or garage door? Street artists plan for this. If they decide to show their works in galleries and enter the art market, this idea no longer applies.

What motivates you to exhibit art and thus make it accessible to other people and inspire them?
Running a gallery has made me confident in predicting trends or movements. Some young artists had their first artistic experiences with spray cans on the street. I was happy to help them exhibit in a gallery and grow from there. The interface or transition is what interests me.

Art in urban spaces is transient and often only visible for a short time. To what extent does that appeal to you?
It's simply exciting; the mysterious and not always legal game has its appeal. For me, a short message, a political statement or even the subversive communication between the artists is part of the cityscape.

With street/urban art exhibitions, it is often important for artists to successfully transfer the feeling of the street into a closed gallery space. In your opinion, is this absolutely necessary?
Not at all. I also think that street artists don't have to reference their street art. Artists can have been socialized with street art and, for example, follow completely different artistic paths after studying at an academy.

The transportation from the street to the screen doesn't always work well for me either.

When an artist becomes known for a certain symbol or image, it inspires me to discover it on a wall somewhere in the world, but not necessarily framed on the wall in my home.

Where do you get your inspiration from?
Instagram, for example, is a good platform for artists. In terms of street art, of course, traveling and visiting museums and exhibitions in general.

What makes a perfect location for works in the city? How important is the interplay of environment and motif for you when you look at the works?
I often see industry using artworks by artists and not citing them as a reference, for example filming a commercial in front of a painted wall, or conversely, artists painting walls in public spaces on behalf of companies to advertise a product. I like what I just said better: I walk through the city and discover something that wasn't there last week and that the artist has taken a risk to show me. I like that a lot.

Many artists work with a pseudonym instead of their real name. Can you tell us more about the background?
Absolutely not 🙂

What do you associate with Düsseldorf?
Düsseldorf is a good location with neighboring cities and countries within easy reach. The city has rightly maintained its status in the art world to this day, despite all its provincial colorations.

Are there any artists or people (whether urban art, music, architecture, Köbes ...) from Düsseldorf who have influenced you?
In my career, people have been nothing but benevolent and supportive, especially in Düsseldorf. Düsseldorf's music and club scene, which is also well known, inspires the art scene and vice versa. There are many to name, but someone like Philipp Maiburg has often turned visions into reality and enriched the city enormously.

Are there any other places in Düsseldorf that you should definitely visit?

THE DORF has summarized all the highlights well.

Thank you very much!