Dutch artist Marijke van Warmerdam has been developing a characteristic body of work including film, photography, paintings and sculptures since the 1990’s. She is best known for her short film loops, with which she first garnered international attention at the Venice Biennale in 1995. Shortly thereafter, her work Douche (Shower) 1995 was displayed for an extended period of time on one of the platforms of Schiphol Airport Train Station, where thousands of travellers could see the film while waiting for their train. Voetbal, (Football), the selected piece for the Warmoes Biennale: 1995 was made in Amsterdam in the same year.

Van Warmerdam relies not on story-telling but on the visual power of the motif: a hat dancing in the wind, a drop of milk slowly dissolving in a glass of water, a girl doing a handstand or a red suitcase sliding down a snowy mountain. Through endless repetition, these seemingly trivial events take on a sculptural quality and an almost dreamlike beauty. In their simplicity, van Warmerdam’s sculptures, photo works and paintings are closely related to her film loops. Her view of the world is lighthearted, humorous and unexpected.