Karlo Walz

TL;NR I make photography, painting, sculptures and performances with a little bit of an obsession but aiming to impact with art in a spiritual way.

My work explores the depths of human emotion through facial expressions, gestures, and the nuances captured in photography. I am driven by an obsession with analyzing these elements, seeking to understand and convey their unspoken narratives. In my paintings, I strive to create a reflective space—one that acts as a mirror for the contemplating viewer. By pushing the boundaries of each medium, I aim to weave them together into a unified artistic language, bridging the gap between observation and introspection.

CV

Karlo Walz, born in 1960, grew up in Freudenstadt Dietersweiler, a very small village in Black Forest, south of Germany. He studied mainly Mechanical Theoretical Engineering and Mathematics and for pleasure English Literature in Karlsruhe with the goal of becoming a technical development aid worker. During his studies he travelled India, visited in the University in Bangalore, some development projects, went to an ashram in Kerala and after this stepped into two years of community service in Hamburg.
After earning his Diploma (aka Master) degree he did not want to work in the area of engineering and searching what to do he worked for several years with physically and mentally handicapped individuals.
After some more school / studies he get retrained for a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Finance.
He then took on a role in Controlling and moreover as a subject matter expert in Financial Reporting Projects for a multinational corporation while living and working in Hamburg he had teams working in India and London, while he tried to persue his artistic expressions as best as possible whenever there was some spare time and energy. He stopped working in his economic field 2020, decided to move to Berlin and try to squize into art far more if this would be possible in his age, to follow his instict for his art expression search.

Since is youngest age of 13 he used to do photography in all kind of ways but it was always to get in contact, as the artistic love language between humans, animals, plants and the earth. Starting with the cheapest possible analog cameras he tend to use these as a tool, like a brush used and to be used. To extend his field of photography and extend the setting he started experiments with performances, theatre, stage, light design, sculptures as to create a more artistic setting for expression and finally good photographs.

Exhibitions

2025 Dec „Schau“ in Sinberlin, Berlin Kreuzberg
2025 Dec „Not Pretty“ Performance at Sinberlin, Berlin Kreuzberg
2025 Jul „Living Chandelier“ at 48 Stunden Neukölln im Prachtsaal, Berlin Neukölln.
2024 Nov Small Temple Installation at Totenpicknick in the Mahalla Berlin for the Night of the Death
2024 Sep „In Blue“ – Body painting performance at Mahalla Berlin during Berlin Art Week
2024 Jun „Temple of Now“ – Nowhere, Spain
2024 May „Burn Creations“ – Collective exhibition at Studio Otto, Haus der Statistik, Berlin
2023 May „Temple of Now“ – Schloss Beesenstedt, Sachsen-Anhalt
2022 Jun „Temple of Now“ – Agersø, Denmark
2020 Jun „Evening of Light“ – Art Installation in Hamburg
2018 Mar „Burner Moments“ – Collective Exhibition at CRCRL, Berlin
2017 Nov „Burner Moments“ – Solo Photography Exhibition at Ponybar, Hamburg
2016 Feb „Blue Moon & Ashes“ – Solo Photography Exhibition at Studio Galerie Herren Simpel, Hamburg
1986 Mar: Film „Behindert oder Was“ (30 min) (K. Walz. H. Teiner, E. Treite)
1985 Jun „Menschen & Mensa“ in der Uni Hamburg.

Projects

2025 Mar „Pink it Up – The Art Experience Saloon“ at Schloss Beesenstedt
2021 Nov Still Photo for the Music Video Production „autumn live set“ from Konstantin Lackner
2021 and 2022, 2024 Temple of Now
2020 – 2022 Body Painting Photography and Performances in Berlin
2020 Mar Theatre Piece in Schloss Beesenstedt
2019 Sep „Hydras Rache“ Performance, Schloss Schönow
2019 Oct „Burner for Climate“ Photo Project at Burn Night Berlin at Anomalie Club
2019 Aug „Siren Performance“ at Kiezburn
2019 Oct Art Installation and Performance Photography in Schloss Brooks

Photography

My photography is a medium to express my ideas, often through settings that resemble a performance—though not in the form of traditional posing. I view it as a dance, a form of communication between me and my subjects. It exists in the space between authenticity and curation.

Chaos serves as one of my guiding principles, while self-expression and immediacy are the core elements. I would like to showcase some of my works.
Bigger pictures can be seen in the portfolio gallery

Painting

As part of my plan to build an art temple for the Burner community in Europe—an installation meant to travel to various Burns—I decided to focus on art as a medium for meditation.

Approximately four years ago, I took a course in abstract painting at the Art University in Ottersberg, near Bremen. This experience captivated me, opening a new realm of expression that felt liberating compared to the constraints of photography settings.

I describe my work as “meditative spiritual abstract painting.” For me, these paintings are a medium to achieve the focus needed for meditation. I primarily use watercolors, ink, and acrylics. There are no plans to work with oil paints, graffiti, or similar mediums, as I create all my work in my living room and wish to avoid strong odors. The only exception is the occasional use of spray varnish.

I cannot yet foresee how this journey will continue, but I am eager to explore this path further.
Bigger pictures can be seen in the portfolio gallery