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Should you be thinking about bathroom renovations, it might be wise to avoid employing this German artist for the job.

Indeed, Herfeldt is a whiz with a silicone gun, producing fascinating creations from this unlikely substance. Yet longer you examine her creations, the more one notices that an element is a little strange.

The thick tubes made of silicone she produces stretch over their supports where they rest, hanging downwards to the ground. Those twisted foam pipes swell until they split. Some creations break free from their acrylic glass box homes fully, evolving into a magnet of debris and fibers. Let's just say the reviews might not get pretty.

There are moments I feel this sense that items are alive in a room,” remarks the sculptor. This is why I turned to this foam material because it has this very bodily texture and feeling.”

In fact there is an element somewhat grotesque about these sculptures, including the suggestive swelling jutting out, like a medical condition, from the support within the showspace, to the intestinal coils made of silicone that rupture like medical emergencies. Displayed nearby, the artist presents prints showing the pieces seen from various perspectives: they look like wormy parasites seen in scientific samples, or growths on culture plates.

“It interests me is how certain elements within us taking place that seem to hold a life of their own,” Herfeldt explains. Elements you can’t see or manage.”

On the subject of elements beyond her influence, the poster promoting the event displays a picture showing a dripping roof within her workspace in the German capital. It was erected decades ago and according to her, faced immediate dislike among the community since many old buildings were torn down for its development. By the time run-down as the artist – who was born in Munich although she spent her youth north of Hamburg prior to moving to the capital as a teenager – took up residence.

The rundown building was frustrating for the artist – placing artworks was difficult her pieces without fearing risk of ruin – however, it was compelling. With no building plans on hand, no one knew how to repair the problems which occurred. After a part of the roof within her workspace became so sodden it gave way completely, the only solution involved installing it with another – and so the cycle continued.

Elsewhere on the property, Herfeldt says the leaking was so bad that several shower basins got placed within the drop ceiling to channel the moisture elsewhere.

“I realised that the structure was like a body, a completely flawed entity,” she says.

The situation reminded her of the sci-fi movie, the initial work cinematic piece featuring a smart spaceship which becomes autonomous. Additionally, observers may note through the heading – Alice, Laurie & Ripley – other cinematic works influenced impacting Herfeldt’s show. The three names point to the leading women in Friday 13th, the iconic thriller and the extraterrestrial saga as listed. The artist references a 1987 essay written by Carol J Clover, which identifies these surviving characters as a unique film trope – female characters isolated to triumph.

“She’s a bit tomboyish, reserved in nature enabling their survival thanks to resourcefulness,” says Herfeldt of the archetypal final girl. No drug use occurs or engage intimately. It is irrelevant the viewer’s gender, all empathize with the survivor.”

She draws a parallel linking these figures and her sculptures – objects which only maintaining position under strain they face. Does this mean the art really concerning social breakdown than just water damage? As with many structures, these materials meant to insulate and guard against harm are actually slowly eroding around us.

“Absolutely,” says Herfeldt.

Before finding inspiration using foam materials, Herfeldt used alternative odd mediums. Recent shows featured forms resembling tongues using a synthetic material typical for within outdoor gear or in coats. Once more, there's the sense these peculiar objects seem lifelike – some are concertinaed as insects in motion, pieces hang loosely on vertical planes or spill across doorways gathering grime from contact (She prompts audiences to interact leaving marks on pieces). As with earlier creations, the textile works are similarly displayed in – leaving – inexpensive-seeming display enclosures. These are unattractive objects, which is intentional.

“The sculptures exhibit a particular style which makes one highly drawn to, and at the same time being quite repulsive,” she says grinning. “It attempts to seem not there, but it’s actually extremely obvious.”

Herfeldt's goal isn't art to provide relaxation or beauty. Instead, she aims for unease, awkward, maybe even amused. However, should you notice a moist sensation overhead too, don’t say you haven’t been warned.