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until 15.08. | #5092ARTatBerlin | neugerriemschneider (Linienstrasse) shows from 4. July 2026 (Opening: 03.07.) the exhibition Stairway to somewhere: a soundtrack by the artist Thaddeus Strode.
In stairway to somewhere: a soundtrack, Thaddeus Strode’s 13th solo exhibition with neugerriemschneider, references from mass media, philosophy, art history, film, illustration and surf culture converge in a painted mixtape. New human-scale canvases combine figurative and textual elements, exploring themes such as life, death, rebirth, transformation and transcendence. These motifs extend into sculptural works and a sound installation that together create an immersive environment.
Rooted in the visual and cultural landscape of his Californian upbringing, Strode draws on the omnipresent musical backdrop of beaches, car radios and street performers. Influenced by Dadaist cut-up techniques, musique concrète and experimental sound practices, the works bring together expansive fields of colour, handwritten text and comic-like imagery. Familiar motifs are transformed into scenes that oscillate between memory, imagination and uncertainty.
The exhibition functions as a non-hierarchical dialogue between painting, sculpture and sound. Installed at eye level, the paintings invite direct encounters with the figures they depict, while presenting visions of alternative timelines, parallel realities and speculative futures. The apparent lightness of the imagery contrasts with the existential questions at its core.
At the centre of the installation stands Gone From My Sight (Dimensional Flotilla) (in chroma key television blue) (2026), a ship-like sculpture emerging from the gallery wall as though arriving from another dimension. It is accompanied by objects such as crushed cans, transistor radios, seagulls and incense burners, which act as markers of memory, time and impermanence. Rendered entirely in the distinctive blue of video-production bluescreens, these works evoke ideas of immateriality, projection and the potential for endless transformation.
Thaddeus Strode, High Desert Choir Sings While Burning Incense (tin can painting), 2026, acrylic polymer on canvas, 180 x 105 cm © Thaddeus Strode. Courtesy the artist and neugerriemschneider, Berlin. Photo: Jens Ziehe, Berlin
Sound forms an essential component of the exhibition. An amplified guitar and amplifier generate an evolving acoustic landscape of hums, resonances and feedback. Together with a playlist assembled by the artist, they create a multimedia soundtrack in which past and future, memory and possibility intertwine, forming an open-ended narrative that extends beyond the boundaries of the exhibition space.
Thaddeus Strode (*1964) has exhibited internationally at institutions including Kunsthaus Zürich, Belvedere Vienna, Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Los Angeles County Museum of Art and Museum Ludwig in Cologne. He lives and works in Los Angeles.
Opening: Friday, 3. July 2026, 6:00–9:00 pm
Exhibition dates: Saturday, 4. July until Saturday, 15. August 2026
To the gallery
Titel image caption: Thaddeus Strode, Get Rid of Your Body, 2026, ink, watercolor, acrylic on paper, 165 x 106 cm © Thaddeus Strode. Courtesy the artist and neugerriemschneider, Berlin. Photo: Jens Ziehe, Berlin
Exhibition Thaddeus Strode – Galerie neugerriemschneider | Zeitgenössische Kunst in Berlin | Contemporary Art | Exhibitions Berlin Galleries | ART at Berlin
