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If you're planning washroom remodeling, it might be wise to steer clear of engaging this German artist for such tasks.

Certainly, she's a whiz in handling foam materials, creating fascinating sculptures out of an unusual art material. But as you examine the artworks, the more it becomes apparent that an element is a little off.

The dense lengths from the foam she crafts extend beyond the shelves supporting them, hanging over the sides below. The knotty foam pipes expand till they rupture. Some creations leave their transparent enclosures entirely, becoming a magnet of debris and fibers. One could imagine the ratings are unlikely to earn pretty.

At times I get the feeling that objects possess life in a room,” remarks the sculptor. This is why I started using silicone sealant as it offers a distinctly physical texture and feeling.”

Indeed one can detect somewhat grotesque about the artist's creations, including that protruding shape jutting out, similar to a rupture, off its base at the exhibition's heart, or the gut-like spirals of foam which split open resembling bodily failures. Along a surface, Herfeldt has framed photocopies of the works viewed from different angles: resembling squirming organisms picked up on a microscope, or colonies in a lab setting.

What captivates me that there are things inside human forms occurring that also have their own life,” she says. Elements which remain unseen or control.”

Talking of things she can’t control, the promotional image promoting the event displays a photograph of the leaky ceiling at her creative space in Kreuzberg, Berlin. The building had been built in the early 1970s and according to her, faced immediate dislike among the community as numerous older edifices were torn down in order to make way for it. It was already dilapidated upon her – who was born in Munich but grew up north of Hamburg then relocating to Berlin as a teenager – moved in.

The rundown building proved challenging for her work – she couldn’t hang the sculptures without fearing risk of ruin – but it was also compelling. Lacking architectural drawings available, no one knew the way to fix the malfunctions that developed. Once an overhead section within her workspace was saturated enough it collapsed entirely, the sole fix involved installing the panel with a new one – perpetuating the issue.

In a different area, she describes the leaking was so bad that a series of collection units were installed in the suspended ceiling in order to redirect the water to a different sink.

I understood that the structure was like a body, a completely flawed entity,” Herfeldt states.

This scenario evoked memories of a classic film, the director's first 1974 film featuring a smart spaceship which becomes autonomous. As the exhibition's title suggests through the heading – a trio of references – other cinematic works influenced to have influenced this exhibition. The three names point to main characters in Friday 13th, another scary movie and Alien respectively. She mentions an academic paper by the American professor, which identifies these “final girls” an original movie concept – protagonists by themselves to save the day.

They often display toughness, rather quiet enabling their survival because she’s quite clever,” the artist explains about such characters. They avoid substances nor sexual activity. Regardless the audience's identity, everyone can relate to the survivor.”

The artist identifies a connection from these protagonists and her sculptures – things that are just about staying put under strain they face. Is the exhibition more about social breakdown than just leaky ceilings? Similar to various systems, such components meant to insulate and guard against harm in fact are decaying in our environment.

“Absolutely,” responds the artist.

Before finding inspiration using foam materials, she experimented with other unusual materials. Previous exhibitions included organic-looking pieces crafted from the kind of nylon fabric typical for on a sleeping bag or in coats. Similarly, one finds the impression these peculiar objects could come alive – certain pieces are folded resembling moving larvae, others lollop down off surfaces or extend through entries attracting dirt from footprints (Herfeldt encourages viewers to touch and soil the works). As with earlier creations, the textile works also occupy – and escaping from – cheap looking display enclosures. The pieces are deliberately unappealing, and that's the essence.

“They have a particular style that somehow you feel very attracted to, and at the same time being quite repulsive,” she says amusedly. “It attempts to seem not there, but it’s actually extremely obvious.”

The artist does not create art to provide ease or beauty. Rather, her intention is to evoke unease, strange, maybe even amused. But if you start to feel a moist sensation overhead too, remember this was foreshadowed.