Back in Berlin: Threads of Gold at BBA Gallery - 20.11.25 - 17.01.26
Tim Bengel | Contemporary German Artist
Tim Bengel is a contemporary German artist. Over the past years, he has built a wide-ranging portfolio across different art forms. Initially known for his striking gold-and-sand works, he has since expanded into sculpture with pieces such as the solid-gold Avocado Bagel and the stainless-steel Superkraut sculpture. Bengel’s works are collected internationally. He lives and works in Esslingen near Stuttgart, developing new concepts for public art and seeking to make art more accessible to everyone. This is the official website of Tim.
From the start, Tim Bengel has been driven to do things differently – combining innovation and aesthetics. This is most evident in his intricate collages of black sand, white sand and gold leaf. Bengel developed this demanding technique over several years, transforming two traditional materials into something new. Videos of his sand-and-gold works have reached hundreds of millions of people on social media and marked the beginning of his international art career.
Bringing art out of galleries and closer to people is central to Tim Bengel’s practice. His first large-scale installation, Flower Skull Cemetery, was unveiled in Berlin in 2019 and invited visitors to reflect on their own life paths while walking through a pop-up cemetery of 100 engraved headstones. In 2023 he designed a special jersey for VfB Stuttgart, creating an unusual bridge between art and football – with over 100,000 fans waiting to buy it. His first public sculpture, the stainless-steel Superkraut in front of the StadtPalais in Stuttgart, has since become a local landmark and a destination for school classes and plein-air painters alike.
For Tim Bengel, art is always an engagement with the spirit of the times. His work Who Wants to Live Forever? critiques the contradictions of unsustainable superfoods and status symbols. Inspired by the myth of King Midas, Bengel created what is likely the world’s most expensive avocado bagel – cast from around seven kilograms of solid gold and polished the manufactory Kussmaul, which is known for perfecting interiors for cars such as Bugatti.
As a response to the unsustainable avocado, Bengel set out to highlight a real, local superfood: cabbage. Grown worldwide in countless varieties – from Brussels sprouts to broccoli, kale and red cabbage – it is healthy, sustainable and versatile. Together with the Gemüsering Stuttgart and the StadtPalais museum, Bengel launched the Superkraut Festival, his first project as a curator. He invited more than 15 artists including Alicja Kwade and David Shrigley, and collaborated with top chefs (among them Johann Lafer and Europe’s leading food influencer FitGreenMind) who offered new culinary takes on cabbage. In cooperation with VfB Stuttgart, an abstract cross section of a cabbage head was also translated into a special-edition jersey, attracting major media attention and collectors’ interest.
The 100 marble slabs from Bengel’s Berlin installation have become sought-after collectors’ pieces. Each slab, with its unique veining, is an individual work, offering daily opportunities for motivation and reflection.
Alongside creating his own art, Tim Bengel has built a significant collection of works by other artists, which he has periodically exhibited in his Studio Berkheim. He has also loaned pieces to institutions such as the Kunstmuseum Stuttgart and the Kunstverein Esslingen at Villa Merkel. During his Superkraut Festival Bengel appeared publicly for the first time as a curator, bringing together 15 artists including Adriana Oliver, Alicja Kwade, Chloe Wise, Claude Lalanne, Daisy Dodd-Noble, David Shrigley, Emma Steinkraus, Gab Bois, Georg Barinov, Holly Halkes, Jihye Park, Lindsey Lou Howard, Marius Sperlich, Oh de Laval and Sara Birns in a single exhibition.
Sand & Gold
Public Art
Avocado Bagel
SUPERKRAUT
Stones
Curate & Collect
Artist Statement /Bio
Video Library
Contact