Bronze Venus Wall Appliqué, USA

As the ancient Greek stone masters turned to the ideal human form to depict their gods and goddesses, Haase reignites this ancient tradition with a contemporary aesthetic that is all his own. Commanding and dynamic, the Venus Wall Appliqué is hand-carved in foam before being cast and smoothly joined to an undulating onxy form encasing LED lights. As a lighting fixture or as a hanging sculpture, the work plays with forms both feminine and masculine.

In 2013, Markus Haase formally launched his first series of sculptural furniture exclusively with Todd Merrill Studio. Since then, his work has attracted the attention of designers, critics, and collectors worldwide. Haase has been exhibited at prestigious art fairs including The Salon: Art + Design in New York; Collective Design in New York; the Pavilion of Arts and Design in Paris, London, and New York; FOG: Design + Art in San Francisco; and Spring Masters in New York.

Haase refined his sculpting practice studying under Europe’s preeminent masters of stone carving, restoring centuries-old Gothic cathedrals across Northern Germany for over a decade. These experiences, combined with his fresh and impressive eye for design, allow Haase to create his dynamic, expressive works. Haase demonstrates his sculpting virtuosity through his designs that imbue wood and stone with a remarkable sense of fluidity and movement. Carved wood assumes qualities of drapery, while marble suggests energy and vigor. His dynamic sculptural lighting defines a new artistry for the twenty-first century, managing to sculpt light itself. As Todd Merrill describes, “Markus Haase is not making a piece of furniture that looks like art… He is a sculptor making art that serves functional ends.”