Design and Art Australia Online

Steffen Lehmann, who works at the intersection of art and architecture, was born in Stuttgart, Germany in 1963, the son of an artist and engineer. Upon leaving school he trained as an apprentice in a cabinet maker’s workshop and in 1983 held an internship at an architect’s office. That same year he enrolled in a design course at the Fachhochschule Trier and later at the University of Applied Sciences in Mainz, from which he was awarded a Diploma in 1988.

During the 1980s he also took various master and special summer classes with leading architects in Salzburg, before completing his undergraduate architectural studies at the Architectural Association, School of Architecture, London (1988-90). Thereafter he worked for three years in Tokyo with Japanese architect Arata Isozaki (1990-92) whose ideas on global citizenship struck a sympathetic chord with Lehmann. When he returned to Germany, Lehmann lived in Berlin where he established his own architectural practice and the Space Laboratory for Architectural Research and Design (s_Lab). Whilst there, he read for his PhD at the Technical University, Berlin (1999-2003). In 2003 he arrived in Australia to take up a chair in architecture at Queensland University of Technology before moving to the Architectural Design School, University of Newcastle, New South Wales. As a practicing architect, public artist, curator and editor, Lehmann is also involved in international research initiatives concerning environmental sustainability and urban renewal.

Lehmann’s ideas-based practice reflects a number of influences, one being the vibrant intellectual climate of post-Wall Berlin in the 1990s, which saw a 'positive clash’ emerge between communist and capitalist ideologies, with new synergies developing between people and public spaces. An exploration of the relationship between the citizenry and the city echoes in many of Lehmann’s projects. Travel has been another determining influence on the artist. His witnessing of diverse physical and natural environments of many cities has informed his interdisciplinary approach to public art. Finally, he has been inspired by the work of numerous artists, in particular Gordon Matta-Clark.

Lehmann uses site-specific installations to provoke interactions between people and places. He has developed many such projects in collaboration with his wife, the media artist Cida de Aragon. Although much of their work has been temporary, the Brisbane installation, Resilience (2007-08), which commemorates the women’s suffrage movement in Australia, is a permanent work.

Lehmann views his role as curator of interdisciplinary collaborations as the most effective means to generate dialogue between artists and architects about urban renewal. His Back to the City (2008) project examined ways in which artists and designers might suggest new possibilities for post-industrial cities such as the port city of Newcastle after the demise of its coal and steel industries. Lehmann’s fairly loose curatorial brief encouraged innovative collaborations around ideas of temporality and locality that would first of all inspire the participants and viewers, and then lead to a richer debate on urban renewal. For one month, parts of the city were energised by unexpected art works, many informed by local experts, and all aspiring to leave lasting impressions on a seemingly-altered city fabric. Lehmann believes shared memories can empower residents to contribute to debates on urban renewal. His ideas are further explored in his 2008 book Back to the City: Strategies for Informal Urban Interventions.

In his teaching at Newcastle University, Lehmann has encouraged small scale cross-disciplinary studios between architecture, art and photo media.

In 2008 he was appointed the UNESCO Chair in Sustainable Urban Development for Asia and the Pacific.

Writers:

De Lorenzo, Dr Catherine Note:
Ferrara, Stephanie Note:

Date written:

2008

Last updated:

2011

Status:

peer-reviewed