Playful Giants: Public Art by German Collective Inges Idee

Berlin-based art collective Inges Idee has spent over three decades taking the most ordinary objects and blowing them up to a scale that makes public space feel briefly unfamiliar. Formed in 1992, the group is made up of four artists, Hans Hemmert, Axel Lieber, Thomas A. Schmidt and Georg Zey, who work together exclusively on projects in public space while maintaining separate individual practices.

Their creations include enormous sneakers attached to impossibly long legs, colorful figures assembled from stacked rings, giant folding rulers contorted into angular forms and street lamps that seem to be wandering away from their usual positions. By intentionally placing these exaggerated forms where they clearly don’t belong, Inges Idee brings a welcome dose of humor and imagination to the everyday urban landscape.

Images: Inges Idee and Oyamada Kuniya

More art on the grid Inges Idee’s website