Lara Werth graduated from Kunstakademie Düsseldorf in June 2024 with Katharina Wulff, previously studying with Siegfried Anzinger. The subject of Werth’s works are deserted hidden object images of dystopian urban spaces, created with Edding, acrylic marker, chalk, oil pencil and ink on large-format paper. These detailed and infinitely intricate drawings bear witness to chaotic cityscapes and fragile balances of urban (sub)cultures – every detail, no matter how small, seems to have been taken from real life. This urban texture – consisting of houses, power lines, fight clubs, flying streets, railroad tracks or jumps and floating suspension bridges – is paired with natural scenes of flowing water veins and animals. Long-extinct, domesticated or endangered creatures such as tigers, dinosaurs, donkeys or prehistoric fishes roam through a fictional world created by the artist, in which very concrete references to human civilization and the built environment can be found time and again. Urban fiction? Werth’s work process reflects personal impressions from her years of traveling as a competitive athlete. In addition to her work as an artist, she is a professional martial artist and holds titles in Full-Muay-Thai and Fullcontact Kickboxing.