Many of the themes in Ortmeyer’s work draw from her keen interest in — and uncanny understanding of — cultural, human, and political interrelations, whether contemporary or historic, highbrow or lowbrow, academic or punk. Years of working on her publications about chess have taken her on a world library tour de force (Mexico City, New York, Reykjavík, Paris) and have equipped her with a scientific rigor that is rare among contemporary artists.

But rather than taking a purely analytical approach, Ortmeyer marries her scholarly inclinations with an inquisitive and sometimes biting naivety, allowing her to effortlessly break down the most complex intricacies of the human psyche in what may otherwise seem benign or platitudinous contexts. And in all her ongoing quest to discover deeper universal truths, she never compromises her unapologetic passion for beauty … and for love.

Sarah Ortmeyer is a graduate of Städelschule, Staatliche Hochschule für Bildende Künste, Frankfurt am Main and University of Applied Arts, Vienna. Selected exhibitions include: Riga International Biennial of Contemporary Art (Riga) , Kunstverein München (Munich); Belvedere21 (Vienna); Museum of Modern Art (Warsaw); Palais de Tokyo (Paris); MAK Center (Los Angeles); KW Institute for Contemporary Art (Berlin); Wittgenstein House (Vienna); Stedelijk Museum Bureau (Amsterdam); Museum für Moderne Kunst (Frankfurt); MoMA PS1 (New York); Tel Aviv Museum (Tel Aviv), Monnaie de Paris (Paris), Hamburger Bahnhof (Berlin) and Swiss Institute (New York). Her work has been featured in Artforum, Frieze Magazine, Kunstforum International, The New York Times, and The New Yorker, among other group shows including The St. Petersburg Paradox, Swiss Institute, New York City, 2014; Champs Elysees, Palais de Tokyo, Paris, 2013; New Internationals, Frankfurter Kunstverein, Frankfurt am Main, 2011; and Kant Elegant Kalifornia, MAK Center, Los Angeles, 2011.