Jakob Kolding

Jakob Kolding is a Danish artist known for his collages and prints.

Biography of Jakob Kolding

Jakob Kolding was born in 1971 in Albertslund, Denmark. From 1995 to 2000, he studied at The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. 

In 2017, he created the stage design and scenography for an original opera for the Bregenzer Festspiele in collaboration with Kunsthaus Bregenz.

Jakob Kolding's works have been exhibited worldwide. Some notable solo and group shows featuring his artworks include Drawings, Galleri Campbells Occasionally, Copenhagen, Denmark (1995), Borgmann + Nathusius, Cologne, Germany (2001), Skate Culture, Bildmuseet, Umeå, Sweden (2007), Jakob Kolding, the University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, USA (2010), Giving Form to the Impatience of Liberty, SKV Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany (2013), Another World With Difficulties, Team Gallery, Los Angeles, USA (2016), JUMP, Galleri Nicolai Wallner, Copenhagen, Denmark (2017), Movements, Salzburger Kunstverein, Salzburg, Austria (2018), and many more. 

Currently, tha artist lives and works in Berlin, Germany.

Jakob Kolding's Art Style

Jakob Kolding explores contemporary urban space through his collages and prints. With a graphic and black-and-white aesthetic, Kolding's work is deeply influenced by urban planning and the modernist architecture prevalent in the European cities he operates in, such as Amsterdam and Berlin. Kolding's collages combine images of built and planned spaces with figures that pay homage to street and urban culture. Additionally, Kolding frequently incorporates text in his works. 

Jakob Kolding's artistic practice is rooted in the fundamentals and history of collage. Drawing inspiration from diverse sources, including the visual arts, literature, theater, pop culture, hip-hop, science-fiction, urban imagery, and contemporary culture, Kolding has developed his own unique visual vocabulary. Layer by layer, he constructs a world that is both intricately complex and visually captivating.  

In recent years, Jakob Kolding’s practice has shifted, focusing on a more physical presence. Building upon his signature cut and paste technique, Kolding has ventured into the creation of cutout sculptures reminiscent of dioramas and scenography. These three-dimensional collages break free from traditional boundaries, unfolding and expanding within the spaces they inhabit.