Stefanie Heinze was born in Berlin in 1987, where she lives and works today. She studied at the National Academy of Fine Arts in Oslo in 2012, and then at the Academy of Fine Arts Leipzig in 2014, the latter being one of the most prestigious and oldest art institutions in Europe.

Heinze has had solo exhibitions at many galleries internationally including: Capitain Petzel, Berlin; Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London; Petzel New York; and LC Queisser, Tbilisi. Recent group exhibitions include, The Hepworth Wakefield, West Yorkshire (2022-23); ICA Miami (2022); Boros Foundation with Berghain, Berlin (2020); Deichtorhallen, Hamburg (2020); Sammlung Philara, Düsseldorf (2019); and Saatchi Gallery, London (2018). Her work is held in various private and public collections globally and in this country by the Hepworth, Wakefield.

In her work, Heinze depicts fantastical scenes in which abstracted and ambiguous forms converge and dissolve into one another and their surroundings. Through a clever use of recognisable objects and symbolism, her paintings pursue a playful and humorous critique of the constructions of gender, sexuality, and class. Rendered in a bright and vibrant palette, Heinze starts by applying acrylic paint to the canvas, which she then builds upon in layers of oil.

Turmoil