Phoebe Collings-James at KH Künstler:innenhaus Bremen

In summer 2026, artist Phoebe Collings-James (b. 1987 in London, UK) will present new ceramic works at KH Künstler:innenhaus Bremen for her solo show Let this be the anchor.

Collings-James’ works display a range of moods and surfaces. They are characterized by a rich variety of traces, marks, and textures, and engage with themes of language, emotion, and violence. Markings and signs, which consistently appear on the surfaces of the artist’s works, function as traces of resistance, while performative processes shape their creation, directly embedding the body into their making.

Inscribing, reworking, and layering are central to Collings-James’ practice, establishing a poetic ground from which the works grow and constantly change.
With this new body of work, conceived specifically for KH Künstler:innenhaus Bremen, Phoebe Collings-James turns to the image of the tower. She explores it formally as a vantage point, a framework, and a supporting structure. The tower thus appears not only as an architectural object, but also as a conceptual figure: a symbol of elevation and orientation, as well as fragility and potential collapse. This tension between collapse and supporting structure within the exhibition can be described through Patricia Noxolo’s concept of the “fractal.” Recognizable patterns that repeat across different levels create a sense of order amidst complexity and apparent instability. The sculptures in the exhibition take up this gesture: they are not monumental, but fragmentary, mobile, and vulnerable.