Michael Sailstorfer

Frequently working with recycled and found objects, Michael Sailstorfer creates assemblages and installations that alter the function of mundane items into that of artworks. In his work Shooting Star (2002), the artist catapulted an old street lamp from a roof, transforming it into an ephemeral light as it was destroyed. In the large public work Tornado (2011), commissioned by the Public Art Fund, industrial steel and reclaimed tires were transformed into a monumental, swaying sculpture that functioned as a force of nature within its setting: the skyscrapers of industrial New York City. His works have exhibited by numerous public and private institutions, including Modern Art Oxford, Museum Tinguely in Basel, Walker Art Center, and the Barbican Centre in London.