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If you're planning washroom remodeling, it might be wise not to choose engaging this German artist for such tasks.

Indeed, Herfeldt is a whiz in handling foam materials, crafting intriguing artworks out of an unusual medium. Yet the more examine these pieces, the stronger you realise that an element is a little unnerving.

The thick strands of sealant Herfeldt forms stretch past display surfaces where they rest, sagging downwards towards the floor. The knotty silicone strands expand until they split. Some creations escape their transparent enclosures completely, becoming a magnet for grime and particles. One could imagine the reviews would not be pretty.

“I sometimes have the feeling that objects seem animated inside an area,” remarks the German artist. This is why I started using this foam material as it offers such an organic sensation and look.”

Certainly there is an element almost visceral regarding these sculptures, including that protruding shape jutting out, similar to a rupture, from its cylindrical stand in the centre of the gallery, to the intestinal coils of foam that rupture resembling bodily failures. On one wall, the artist presents images depicting the sculptures viewed from different angles: appearing as squirming organisms picked up on a microscope, or colonies on culture plates.

What captivates me is how certain elements in our bodies taking place that also have their own life,” the artist notes. Elements that are invisible or manage.”

On the subject of things she can’t control, the exhibition advertisement featured in the exhibition includes a photograph of the leaky ceiling within her workspace in the German capital. The building had been made in the seventies and, she says, was instantly hated from residents as numerous old buildings were torn down to allow its construction. By the time run-down upon her – who was born in Munich yet raised in northern Germany before arriving in Berlin in her youth – moved in.

This decrepit property proved challenging to Herfeldt – placing artworks was difficult her pieces without concern risk of ruin – but it was also compelling. With no building plans available, nobody had a clue the way to fix the problems which occurred. When the ceiling panel at the artist's area was saturated enough it gave way completely, the only solution involved installing the damaged part – and so the cycle continued.

In a different area, she describes the water intrusion was severe that a series of drainage containers were installed within the drop ceiling to channel the moisture elsewhere.

“I realised that the structure acted as a physical form, a totally dysfunctional body,” Herfeldt states.

The situation brought to mind a classic film, John Carpenter’s debut 1974 film concerning a conscious ship that takes on a life of its own. And as you might notice from the show’s title – Alice, Laurie & Ripley – more movies have inspired shaping the artist's presentation. Those labels refer to the female protagonists in Friday 13th, the iconic thriller and the extraterrestrial saga in that order. Herfeldt cites an academic paper from a scholar, which identifies these surviving characters as a unique film trope – protagonists by themselves to triumph.

They often display toughness, reserved in nature enabling their survival thanks to resourcefulness,” says Herfeldt of the archetypal final girl. They avoid substances nor sexual activity. It is irrelevant the viewer’s gender, everyone can relate to the final girl.”

She draws a connection from these protagonists to her artworks – things that are just about maintaining position despite the pressures they’re under. So is her work really concerning cultural decay beyond merely leaky ceilings? Because like so many institutions, these materials intended to secure and shield from deterioration are gradually failing within society.

“Completely,” responds the artist.

Earlier in her career using foam materials, the artist worked with other unusual materials. Previous exhibitions have involved tongue-like shapes made from the kind of nylon fabric typical for within outdoor gear or apparel lining. Again there is the feeling such unusual creations seem lifelike – certain pieces are folded as insects in motion, others lollop down from walls or extend through entries attracting dirt from footprints (She prompts people to handle and soil the works). As with earlier creations, these nylon creations are also housed in – and breaking out of – budget-style transparent cases. They’re ugly looking things, and that's the essence.

“They have a specific look that somehow you feel compelled by, while also appearing gross,” Herfeldt remarks grinning. “It attempts to seem invisible, however, it is highly noticeable.”

Herfeldt is not making art to provide ease or visual calm. Rather, her intention is to evoke uncomfortable, strange, perhaps entertained. But if you start to feel a moist sensation from above additionally, remember this was foreshadowed.