Ian Waelder’s practice explores memory and trace by isolating archival histories and language in relation to his biography, working through the poetics of the accident and the repurposing of the discarded. Waelder’s work unfolds through the mediums of photography, sculpture, sound and installation.

A solo exhibition of Waelder’s work, Even in a language that is not your own, took place at the Es Baluard Contemporary Art Museum, Palma, in 2023.

Ian Waelder (b. 1993 in Madrid, Spain) lives and works in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

Education

He studied at the Hochschule für Bildende Künste – Städelschule, Frankfurt am Main, with Haegue Yang, Mark von Schlegell and Peter Fischli.

Exhibitions

Selected solo exhibitions include Super Super Markt, Berlin (2024); Neuer Kunstverein, Gießen (2024); Es Baluard Contemporary Art Museum, Palma (2023); Galerie Rolando Anselmi, Rome (2023); ethall gallery, Barcelona (2022); L21, Palma (2021); and the Finnish Museum of Photography, Helsinki (2018).

Waelder’s work has been included in group exhibitions at Fundació Antoni Tàpies, Barcelona (2023); Delfina Foundation, London (2023); Super Super Markt, Berlin (2023); Kunstverein Wiesen, Wiesen (2023); Francis Irv, New York (2023); Museum Stift Stams, Stams (2022); Venice Architecture Biennale, Venice (2021); Galerie Rolando Anselmi. Atina (2020); Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (2017); L21, Palma (2017); and the Contemporary Art Center of Galicia (CGAC), Santiago de Compostela (2014).

Collections

Ian Waelder’s work is part of public collections worldwide. These include the Es Baluard Contemporary Art Museum, Mallorca; Palma City Council Collection, Mallorca; Camper Foundation, Mallorca; MMK, Frankfurt am Main; ADN Collection, Barcelona; GRECU Collection, Bucharest; and the Braunsfelder Family Collection, Cologne.

Cooking Slowly
émergent magazine, Phin Jennings, 2024

Gallery Weekend Berlin: Where the Sublime and the Ridiculous Coexist
Elephant, Phin Jennings, 2024

Ian Waelder: Today’s News Will Always Be Tomorrow’s History
Mousse Magazine, Carina Bukuts, 2024

In the studio: Ian Waelder
Super Super Markt, 2024