Heike Klussmann
Visual Art
Heike Klussmann, born in 1968, is an internationally recognized artist and Professor of Fine Art/Architecture at the University of Kassel. After studying at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf (1988–1992) and the University of the Arts Berlin (1992–1995), she has lived and worked in Berlin. Klussmann has also taught at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California.
Her work operates at the intersection of art, architecture, technology, and material research, with projects exhibited worldwide, including at Zeche Zollverein Essen, KW Institute for Contemporary Art Berlin, Aedes Berlin, Detour Hong Kong, THINK:Material Toronto, China Art Objects Gallery Los Angeles, and the Akademie der Künste Berlin. A central focus of her practice is the experimental development of new materials and large-scale, site-specific public art projects.
Klussmann is especially noted for co-developing the innovative, light-reflecting concrete “BlingCrete” with architect Thorsten Klooster and an interdisciplinary team. BlingCrete, which embeds glass microspheres in high-performance concrete to create a surface that actively reflects light, has received numerous awards, including the iF gold award and the Design Plus Award, and is used internationally in architecture and design for both its aesthetic and functional properties. Klussmann also won first prize in Düsseldorf’s international competition for the design of the Wehrhahn subway line.
She has held fellowships at Villa Aurora in Los Angeles, the Goslar Kaiserring, and the Berlin Senate for Science, Research, and Culture. In 2009, Klussmann and Klooster founded the transdisciplinary research platform “BAU KUNST ERFINDEN,” dedicated to the experimental development of new material concepts at the intersection of art, architecture, and science.
Klussmann regularly lectures internationally, including at the Bauhaus Kolleg Dessau, Akademie Schloss Solitude Stuttgart, the Academy of Fine Arts Prague, and Lago Dialoghi Vicenza. Her work is distinguished by its integration of artistic research and social relevance, setting new standards for sustainable material innovation in public space.