paths through my garden –
Art by Mark Sieczkarek
Exhibition: October 9–26, 2025

at the Pina Bausch Center (under construction), Bundesallee 260, Wuppertal.

Since the 1980s, Mark Sieczkarek has been active in a wide range of fields as a choreographer and artist. Mark Sieczkarek’s use of organic materials and found objects was a profound aesthetic and philosophical choice. As a true pioneer of what is known today as “upcycling culture,” he transformed elements — from leaves and flowers to discarded objects — into poetic works of art. His work went far beyond a mere trend; it was the visionary manifestation of his unique artistic universe. The retrospective in the fall of 2025 invited visitors to discover an artist who united silence, restraint, virtuoso dedication, imagination, a love for people, plenty of humor, and the whimsical in his persona and in his art. He died on September 8, 2025, one month before the opening. This first major exhibition, curated by him, titled paths through my garden – Art by Mark Sieczkarek, became a journey through artistic worlds, ranging from intimate sketches and powerful images to innovative costume and set designs, moving films, and performative evenings. Visitors could experience how Mark Sieczkarek had been exploring the boundaries between dance, visual art, and performance since the 1980s, redefining them and manifesting his vision across a wide variety of media. The exhibition paths through my garden opened the doors to his multifaceted universe for the first time.

Mark Sieczkarek’s art extends far beyond choreography: Born in Scotland and living in Wuppertal from the 1980s until his death, the artist was a dancer, painter, poet, photographer, and visionary all at once. His pioneering work with recycled materials made him a trailblazer for today’s upcycling culture.

His legendary works, with their stories of creation — such as the dance productions The Tower (2015) and The Tired Queen’s Garden (2019) — as well as his current film Streetwear (2025), are particularly revealing.

Conceived and curated by Mark Sieczkarek, the exhibition and the entire program invited visitors to let his garden continue to grow, along with all his companions, from the bottom of their hearts, in love—perhaps the quality that distinguished him most.

The project was produced by TANZRAUSCHEN. A large team designed and implemented the retrospective, thereby contributing to the preparatory phase of the Pina Bausch Center. Cooperation partners were the Dachverband Tanz, the Pina Bausch Foundation, and the German Dance Archive Cologne. Valuable support was provided by the Von der Heydt Museum and the Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch.

• Concept: Mark Sieczkarek in collaboration with Dr. Uta Atzpodien and Wigabriel Soto Eschebach

• Artistic Curation: Mark Sieczkarek, Wigabriel Soto Eschebach, and Franziska Hartmann

• Exhibition Design & Construction Management: Lars Hoffmann

• Partner: Pina Bausch Zentrum under construction (Bettina Milz and Felicitas Willems)

• Project Coordination, Organization & Fundraising: Dr. Uta Atzpodien

• Organizer, Production & Fundraising: TANZRAUSCHEN (Kerstin Hamburg and Zara Gayk)

With thanks to a wonderful team of contributors and supporters: Malou Airaudo, Jens Albrecht, Anja Arend, Andrea Arendt, Ruth Amarante, Antonio Atzpodien des Araujo Moreira, Jonas Atzpodien de Araujo Moreira, Holger Bergmann, Bodo Berheide, Helga Bier, Salomon Bausch, Wolf Birke, Barbara Cleff, Angela Collenberg, Finola Cronin, Uschi Demmerle, Luc Desroy, Ismael Dia, Sylvia Dockhorn, Jutta und Rainer Dollbaum, Beate Eickhoff, Detlef Erler, Jacques Fatus, Michael Freundt, Andreas Friedrichs, André Füsser, Roberto Graiff, Hartmut Göhlich, Max Christian Graeff, Jens Grossmann, Chrystel Guillebeaud, hamburg wuppertal kommunikation, Andrea Haese-Füsser, Dirk Hesse, Eva Hornhardt, Stsiapan Hurski, Fernando Jacon de Araujo Moreira, Magdalena Jooss, Barbara Kaufmann, Urs Kaufmann, Ursula Kaufmann, Annika Kompart, Rysczard Kopczynski, Elvira Krippl, Chiara Krogull, Martin Kurandt, Nathalie Larquet, Helge Lindh, Gregor Marioth, Lee Méir, Dominique Mercy, Thusnelda Mercy, Marion Meyer, Gerno Michalke, Isabelle Morelli, Roland Mönig, Cristiana Morganti, Anna Lisa Palmieri, Keisuke Mihara, Larissa Plath, Jonathan Rabamus, Ulrich Rasch, Markus Riedel, Ricardo Santos, Georg Schreiber, Dorothea Schwabe, Ingrid Solong, Ulrich Rasch, Monika Rittershaus, Cassio Santiago, Jean Laurent Sasportes, Daniel Schmitt, Luca Giacomo Schulte, Julie Shanahan, Jean Pierre Sieczkarek, Kim Sieczkarek, Ralf Silberkuhl, Emanuele Soavi, Birgit Stopka-Nissen, Jens Stutz, Melanie Suchy, Kenji Takagi, Babette Teichmann, Thomas Thorausch, Paul Tischler, Kseniia Urbanska, Ingrid Walter, Tobias Waszkiewicz, Ulli Weiß, Karlo Wentzel, Mo Wiemer.

This exhibition was made possible thanks to funding from the Kunststiftung NRW, the Fonds Darstellende Künste, the Kulturbüros der Stadt Wuppertal, the Dr. Werner Jackstädt-Stiftung Wuppertal, the Sparkassenfonds für Kunst und Kultur in Wuppertal, and the Stiftung Kalkwerke Oetelshofen.

The Pina Bausch Zentrum is a project of the City of Wuppertal, funded by the State of North Rhine-Westphalia and the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, in collaboration with the Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch and the Pina Bausch Foundation.

TANZRAUSCHEN is a non-profit association based in Wuppertal and is supported by the Cultural Office of the City of Wuppertal.

Further information on the retrospective:
under-construction-wuppertal.de ...
tanzrauschen.de/werkschau