ABOUT
Willehad Eilers (1981, Peine, Germany) also works under the pseudonym Wayne Horse. Beginning his career in the German graffiti scene, Eilers later went on to graduate from the RijksAkademie in Amsterdam. He continues to live and work in the Dutch capital today. His eclectic body of work comprises video, drawing, performance and installation, and is distinctive for its lyrical quality, playful humour and expressiveness. A recurring narrative in his oeuvre revolves around the bizarre, occasionally ugly but always compelling aspects of humanity.
To refer to Willehad Eilers as an artist-ethnographer is not too much of a stretch. Describing his practice as an investigation of the heuristically learnt political and cultural mores that define contemporary society, Eilers gently nudges us towards a poetic realisation of our social selves through his highly performative range of paintings, videos and drawings. Infused with a mischievous, effortless confidence, Eilers’ crude-style works offer us anthropological insight into his observations of the flawed human condition and its perpetual evolution. He unflinchingly presents us with images that convey the disposition of the modern individual towards grotesque, even masturbatory obsessions. Underlying his practice is an artistic methodology that recalls the theorist James Clifford’s concept of “ethnographic surrealism”: he assails the quotidian situations that we think are familiar, and renders them unrecognisable. By mounting successive challenges to the hegemonic boundaries of our imagination, Eilers provokes his viewers into directly interacting with his highly unique works.
Willehad Eilers is represented by
Harlan Levey Projects – http://hl-projects.com/
Galerie Droste – www.galeriedroste.de
He.Ro. – https://www.hero-gallery.com/
He is part of the Hunting group collection, the KGervas collection and the Lisser Art Museum collection.
Artist portrait: Wayne Horse from Sandder on Vimeo.
Education
Gerrit Rietveld Academie, Amsterdam, NL, 2001-2005
Residencies
Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten/
Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, 2009-2010
Fellowships/stipends
2014 Mondriaan Fonds, bewezen talent, NL
2012 Fonds BKVB startstipendium
2010 Familie Hunting, NL
2009 Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds, Chagall Fonds and Gerard Hordijk Fonds
2009 Fonds BKVB, Amsterdam, NL, contribution to working budget
(Selected) solo exhibitions
2018 ‚Happy Holidays Forever‘, Galerie Droste, Wuppertal, GER
2017 ‚Alles Wird Gut‘, A Juan Project, Amsterdam, NL
2016 ‚Alter Senator‘ Harlan Levey Projects, Brussels, BE
2015 ‚Dangerously rich‘ Palermo Galerie, Stuttgart, GER
2014 ‚Haufen und Biester‘ Klattendiek, Bremen, GER
2014 ‚Celebrity Beach‘ Frameshop, Felix Meritis, Amsterdam, NL
2013 ‚FREIZEITGEIST‘ Mink projects, Amsterdam, NL
2013 ‚das paradies‘ HLP project space, Brussels, BEL
2013 ‚youth wars‘ Unruly gallery, Amsterdam, NL
2013 ‚das scheissleben‘ AF galerie, cologne, GER
2011 ‚Great Tales of Moral‘, Selfsevice openartspce, Stuttgart, GER
2011 ‚More Future‘, HLP projectspace, Brussels, BE
2010 ‚Make me proud‘, Museum Jan Cunen, Oss, NL,
2010 ‚Moment Mal‘, Galo Art Gallery, Torino, IT
2009 ‚German Swinehundt in Rotterdam‘, Showroom MAMA, Rotterdam, NL
2009 ‚Mildly Amusing‘, Wolf and Pack, Amsterdam, NL
2006 ‚Teenwolf does time‘, Sign, Groningen, NL
2006 ‚Give those people air‘, Spiritroom, Berlin, GER
(Selected) group exhibitions
2019 ‚Tijdgenoten #7‘, De School Amsterdam, NL
2019 ‚Dallas Art Fair‘ Harlan Levey Projects, Dallas, US
2019 ‚Chronicles‘, Galerie Droste, Wuppertal, GER
2019 ‚CLOSER‘, He.Ro Gallery, Amsterdam, NL
2019 ‚Tijdgenoten #6‘, De school, Amsterdam, NL
2018 ‚The Line Up‘, Centraal Museum Utrecht, Utrecht, NL
2018 ‚Market Forces‘, He.Ro Gallery, Amsterdam, NL
2018 ‚Art is where the heart is‘, Galerie LJ, Paris, FR
2017 ‚Patty Morgan Internet Caffe‘ / ‚Foam Fusion‘, Foam, Amsterdam, NL
2016 ‚Theatre l’Absurde‘, Galerie Gabriel Rolt, Amsterdam, NL
2016 ‚The Devil and me‘, A Juan Project, Amsterdam, NL
2016 ‚Sculpture:Film‘ All together now, Rotterdam, NL
2015 ‚To get there‘ All together now, Rotterdam, NL
2014 ‚Riders on the Storm‘ Olympus Photography playground, Kasbank amsterdam, NL
2014 ‚Pictoplasma10‘ Kaufhaus Jandorf, Berlin, GER
2014 ‚Brain whores‘ ODRADEK, copenhagen, DK
2014 ‚Works on paper 2‘ Kallenbach Gallery, Amsterdam, NL
2014 ‚Wunderkamer‘, Gallery 33, Amsterdam, NL
2014 ‚especially you‘ , MOHS exhibit, copenhagen, DK
2014 ‚Art medal in a global world‘, FIDEM XXXIII, Sofia, Bulgaria
2013 ‚john fox and wayne horse‘ Kallenbach gallery Amsterdam, NL
2013 ‚Costume: written clothing‘ tramway, glasgow, UK
2013 ‚gloomy prospects and lucid adventures‘ NEST, Den Haag, NL
2013 ‚works on paper‘ Kallenbach galerie, Amsterdam, NL
2012 ‚the kids are allright‘, Kunsthal rotterdam, Rotterdam, NL
2012 ‚groupshow‘,HLP project space, Brussels, BEL
2012 ‚urban art efx‘, CBK Amsterdam, NL
2012 ‚old dogs, new tricks‘, Majke Husstege, den bosch, NL
2012 ‚yes, we are open‘, NIMK Nederlands Instituut voor MediaKunst, Amsterdam, NL
2012 ‚LUX/ICA biennale of moving images‘, institute of contemporary art, the mall, london, UK
2012 ‚City of Dog‘, CBK den bosch, den bosch, NL
2012 ’she doesnt care‘, EB&Flow gallery, London, UK
2011 ‚Human nest‘, De Meerse, Hoofdorp, NL
2011 ‚Mohs Exhibit‘, Copenhagen, DK
2011 ‚Sex‘, de paraplu fabriek, Nijmengen, NL
2011 ‚Munt met een Missie‘, Centraal Museum Utrecht, Utrecht, NL
2011 ‚Sweatboxing 2‘, Leto GAllery, Warsaw, PL
2011 ‚Cowboys und Aliens‘, helium cowboy, Hamburg, GER
2011 ‚COMMA‘, Pallazzo della Penna, Perugia, IT
2011 ‚light part 2‘, Gallery Gabriel Rolt, Amsterdam, NL
2011 ‚Twente Biennale‘, Hengelo, NL
2011 ‚Picnic at beit hair‘, Beit Hair, Tel Aviv, ISR
2011 ‚Nacht‘, eddie the eagle museum, amsterdam, NL
2011 ‚light-part 1‘, Paradise row gallery, london, UK
2010 ‚April Rules‘, No Borders Gallery, Hong Kong, PRC
2010 ‚Grow Ups‘, CCC, Shizuoka city, JP
2010 ‚Popjugend‘, Gallery Majke H?sstege, Den Bosch, NL
2010 ‚Don’t Worry, Be Happy’Showroom MAMA, Rotterdam, NL
2009 ‚DROPSTUFF‘, La Biennale di Venezia, Venezia, IT
2009 ‚PICTOPIA‘, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin, GER
2009 ‚RijksakademieOPEN‘, Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten, Amsterdam, NL
2009 ‚Warriors, loners, and space travellers‘, Galerie Gabriel Rolt, Amsterdam, NL
2008 ‚Standpunten‘, Centraal Museum, Utrecht, NL
2007 ‚Nederclips‘, Sm’s Stedelijk Museum ’s Hertogenbosch, Den Bosch, NL
2007 ‚Playgrounds Festival‘, Tilburg, NL
2006 ‚Max Wright was Right‘, Gemeentemuseum, Den Haag, NL
2004 ‚Overschilderen / Overpainting‘, Brussel, BE
2004 ‚Streetsy2k‘, New Jersey, USA
2003 ‚VAV 25‘, Arti et Amicitiae, Amsterdam, NL
Awards and nominations
2015 nomination international competition, Kasseler Dokfest, GER
2014 nomination, international competition Winterthur Filmfestival, CH
2013 WDNX award, best international film, winnipeg, canada
2007 Volkskrant kunstprijs, nomination and second place
2005 ISMAF Award, NL
2005 One Minute Award, NL
2004 Streets y2k Video Festival, US, third prize
1997 gambling awareness poster, first prize
1996 Bremen, DE, ‚Short story award‘
(Selected) film/video screenings
2016 ‚La Roche Sur Yon Film Festival‘, La Roche Sur Yon, FR
2016 ‚IDFA‘ Amsterdam, NL
2016 ‚IFFR‘, Rotterdam, NL
2015 Prague short film festival, Prague, CZ
2014 Kasseler Dokfest, Kassel, GER
2014 Winterthur Film Festival, Winterthur, CH
2014 Hamburger kurzfilm Festival, Hamburg, Germany
2014 The One Minutes on Tour, Power Station of Art /Shanghai
2014 ‚IFFR‘, rotterdam, NL
2013 ‚Portland underground film festival‘, hollywood theatre, portland, USA
2013 ‚Modern times‘ Eye filmmuseum, Amsterdam, NL
2013 ‚Skindeep‘ Eye filmmuseum, Amsterdam, NL
2013 ‚Frisse Oren‘, Tilburg, NL
2012 ‚Incubate festival‘, Tilburg, NL
2011 ‚the ill-mannered milkman‘ Version 1,Impakt Event, Utrecht, NL
2007 presentation and premiere of ‚Elefantboy‘,Impakt Event, Utrecht, NL
2007 ‚Pictoplasma Festival‘, Berlin, GER
2005 ‚Media Art Festival Friesland‘, Leeuwarden, NL
2003 ‚Teek Film en Animatie Festival‘, Breda, NL
Other
2010/2013 guest advising at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam, NL
2011 workshop and guest advising at EEA Berlin, GER
2010 stopmotion animation workshop, Nowhere, Amsterdam, NL
2009 presentation at haus der kulturen der welt pictopia/berlin, GER
2007 exhibition design Nederclips, stedelijk museum, den bosch, NL
2006 presentation at pictoplasma/berlin, GER