When does an object become a source of fear, and when a source of desire? British artist Issy Wood (b. 1993) explores this question in Magic Bullet, her first major solo exhibition in Germany, opening at Schinkel Pavillon in Berlin. The new works in the show respond to the venue’s architecture while drawing on the artist’s sharp observations of objects, events, and the human mind.
Wood’s distinctive painting style, reminiscent of old masters, has been described by critic Barry Schwabsky as “perverse realism.” Her works on canvas, musical instruments, or glossy velvet-upholstered furniture oscillate between realism and surrealism, creating a visual form that is as unsettling as it is seductive. The artist blends the hyper-modern visual language of iPhone imagery with antique sources like frames from forgotten film classics and old catalogues.
Mystery and Consumer Culture
Wood’s works fill the strange fetishes of the commodity world, outdated luxury items, and primitive totems with personal associations. Like her blog confessions, her paintings hover between revelation and concealment. Surfaces and objects function as surrogates for the untouchable fears and desires in the artist’s inner and outer worlds.
Despite the anachronism of technology and the oddity of her subject choices, the artist records her generation’s emotions with seismographic sensitivity. A quote from Margaret Kross’s essay A Throw of the Dice, featured in the exhibition, sums up its philosophy: “Wood’s paintings ask us to read between the lines of fragility and fabricated self-mythology.” According to Kross, the artist’s practice promises defiance of societal vows while acknowledging that we still cling to these beliefs as a shield against the unknown.
Perhaps that “magic bullet” is an ego death that ends the entire game—releasing the trigger and refusing to play in defiance of the system. Wood’s art proposes accepting that our world consists of constructed surfaces, yet cutting through them by making a pact with uncertainty.
Exhibition Details
- Artist: Issy Wood
- Exhibition Title: Magic Bullet
- Venue: Schinkel Pavillon, Berlin
- Dates: 11 September 2025 – 31 January 2026
- Important Note: The exhibition is part of Berlin Art Week 2025.
