Artist
Carsten Höller was born 1961 in Brussels to German parents. Before fully devoting himself to art in the early 1990s, he trained as a natural scientist, completing a Ph.D. in 1988 focused on the ways insects use scent to communicate.
Over the years, he has created site-specific, experimental sculptures in which the viewer becomes active in the exploration of consciousness. By disrupting habitual approaches to the body, space and consciousness, his artworks create new ways for the viewer to experience both the work and themselves. He describes his works as “influential environments” – installations that evoke specific states of mind such as exhilaration, disorientation, doubt, joy and fear.
Höller’s works have been shown in major art institutions worldwide, including Fondazione Prada, Milan (2000); Tate Modern, London (2006); Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin (2010); New Museum, New York (2011); Hayward Gallery, London (2015); Pirelli HangarBicocca, Milan (2016); Museo Tamayo, Mexico City (2019); MAAT, Lisbon (2021); and Moderna Museet, Stockholm (2025).
