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If you're planning restroom upgrades, it might be wise to steer clear of employing this German artist for the job.

Truly, she's a whiz in handling foam materials, producing compelling creations with a surprising substance. However longer you observe these pieces, the more it becomes apparent that an element feels slightly off.

Those hefty lengths from the foam she produces stretch past the shelves supporting them, hanging off the edges to the ground. The knotty foam pipes bulge till they rupture. A few artworks leave the display cases fully, turning into a collector for grime and particles. One could imagine the ratings would not be pretty.

“I sometimes have the feeling that things possess life within a space,” remarks the German artist. Hence I came to use this substance as it offers this very bodily sensation and look.”

Certainly there is an element somewhat grotesque in the artist's creations, including the phallic bulge which extends, similar to a rupture, from its cylindrical stand at the exhibition's heart, and the winding tubes from the material which split open as if in crisis. Along a surface, the artist presents prints showing the pieces captured in multiple views: appearing as wormy parasites observed under magnification, or formations in a lab setting.

“It interests me is how certain elements inside human forms taking place that also have a life of their own,” she says. Elements which remain unseen or command.”

Regarding elements beyond her influence, the exhibition advertisement featured in the exhibition features a picture of the leaky ceiling within her workspace in the German capital. Constructed built in the early 1970s and according to her, was quickly despised by local people as numerous older edifices got demolished to allow its construction. The place was dilapidated as the artist – originally from Munich but grew up in northern Germany then relocating to Berlin in her youth – moved in.

This decrepit property proved challenging to Herfeldt – she couldn’t hang her art works without fearing risk of ruin – but it was also compelling. Lacking architectural drawings on hand, no one knew how to repair the problems which occurred. Once an overhead section at the artist's area was saturated enough it fell apart fully, the sole fix meant swapping the panel with a new one – and so the cycle continued.

In a different area, the artist explains the water intrusion was severe that several drainage containers were installed in the suspended ceiling to divert the moisture elsewhere.

It dawned on me that the structure was like a body, a totally dysfunctional body,” she says.

The situation evoked memories of Dark Star, John Carpenter’s debut 1974 film featuring a smart spaceship which becomes autonomous. As the exhibition's title suggests given the naming – a trio of references – that’s not the only film shaping the artist's presentation. These titles indicate main characters from a horror classic, the iconic thriller plus the sci-fi hit in that order. She mentions an academic paper written by Carol J Clover, that describes these surviving characters an original movie concept – female characters isolated to save the day.

These figures are somewhat masculine, rather quiet and she can survive due to intelligence,” she elaborates regarding this trope. They avoid substances or engage intimately. It is irrelevant who is watching, everyone can relate to the survivor.”

She draws a connection linking these figures to her artworks – things that are just about maintaining position under strain they’re under. Is the exhibition focused on cultural decay rather than simply water damage? Similar to various systems, substances like silicone meant to insulate and guard against harm are gradually failing in our environment.

“Oh, totally,” says Herfeldt.

Before finding inspiration using foam materials, she experimented with other unusual materials. Recent shows included organic-looking pieces using the kind of nylon fabric you might see on a sleeping bag or apparel lining. Similarly, one finds the sense such unusual creations might animate – certain pieces are folded like caterpillars mid-crawl, some droop heavily off surfaces or spill across doorways gathering grime from contact (The artist invites people to handle and dirty her art). As with earlier creations, these nylon creations are also housed in – leaving – inexpensive-seeming acrylic glass boxes. These are unattractive objects, which is intentional.

“The sculptures exhibit a certain aesthetic that draws viewers compelled by, and at the same time being quite repulsive,” Herfeldt remarks grinning. “The art aims for invisible, yet in reality extremely obvious.”

Herfeldt's goal isn't art to provide ease or visual calm. Conversely, she wants you to feel uncomfortable, odd, or even humor. However, should you notice a moist sensation on your head additionally, consider yourself you haven’t been warned.