Studio Visit: Anouk Lamm Anouk

‘No Age. No Gender. No Origin.’ This manifesto permeates Anouk Lamm Anouk’s life. Although terms like ‘age-free,’ ‘gender-free,’ and ‘origin-free’ might seem dystopian to some, they hold a hopeful meaning for Anouk: they represent a liberation from societal constructs to which they have never subscribed. Even as a student at Berlin University of the Arts, Anouk did not lead the typical life of a twenty-something studying art as a queer person in Berlin.

‘I never had an interest in partying or going out. I just wanted to make art – always,’ Anouk shares. They have never let anything deter them from this path. The phenomenon of ‘fear of missing out,’ which has defined entire generations, is foreign to Anouk; in fact, they find it almost threatening. The need to never miss out feels like a prison to Anouk. ‘It must be terrible to have FOMO,’ says Anouk, as if the entire concept is so foreign to them that it seems completely unimaginable. During our conversation, Anouk lies relaxed on a bed, laughing. ‘This interview feels like psychoanalysis!’ Sirius Grace, Anouk’s assistance dog and constant companion, is always within petting range.

Anouk explains that their connection to animals has always run deeper than their with people, which they attribute to their autism. Animals show immediate feelings and communication is straightforward, making it easier for Anouk to bond with them. People, on the other hand, often mask their feelings, suppress their needs, and mimic others. For someone like Anouk, this can be confusing. As a result, animals and solitude have become central elements in Anouk’s life and work.

Finding sanctuary, only partially engaging in social life, and creating space are among Anouk’s biggest daily challenges. ‘Without emptiness, nothing new can emerge,’ Anouk reflects, reclining on the bed across from me. Those who cannot feel at home in themselves are chasing a feeling. ‘Inside it’s soft, outside it’s rough,’ Anouk wrote in an Instagram caption in January 2023. For me, this line symbolises a person who has crafted their own world within the world. Anouk has not only built an inner home but also an external one.

Anouk lives in a beautiful, historic apartment in the centre of Vienna with their wife, Marleen Anouk-Roubik, their dog Sirius Grace, and their cat. Just above is the studio where Anouk spends most of their time painting with oils on canvas. The canvas itself plays a central role – it is more than just a surface for creating art; the canvas material is essential in each piece. It is a symbol which represents space and calm. Without this space, the paintings could not exist, just as Anouk could not live without their own space. The canvas is the home for the characters.

For the exhibition From Humans, Horses, and Hounds, Anouk worked on three continuing series: Lesbian Jazz, Human/Horse, and Human/Hound. Each explores the connection between lesbianism and a love for animals, a tradition that goes back centuries. Anouk draws inspiration from the paintings and sculptures of 19th- and early 20th-century artists such as Romaine Brooks, Lotta Laserstein, and Renée Sintenis, who had relationships with women and often depicted animals in their work. Anouk even entitled one piece For Rosa Bonheur – as a tribute to the French animal painter who openly lived with her female partner in the mid-19th century and famously fought for a special permit to wear trousers, which was illegal for women at that time.

The figures on Anouk’s canvases are often female or non-binary, sometimes gender-free, and always anonymous. The Lesbian Jazz series portrays primarily a lifestyle, a community, and an identity rather than personal stories. Anouk’s artistic practice springs from a pressing need for queer visibility in a world marked by discrimination. The gallery where Anouk held their most recent exhibition was therefore meant to be a welcoming space for everyone who entered. The floor, covered with Persian rugs, invited lingering. There were sculptures of sitting dogs, eerily life-like. The dogs symbolised the acceptance of all beings in a human-made space at Patricia Low Gallery – a location in Venice imbued with exclusivity and privilege during the Biennale di Venezia. Upcoming solo exhibitions in Switzerland, Austria, and New York are on the horizon. Anouk works a great deal but always carries two pillars within them: inner peace and family.

As featured in SLEEK 83 – CALM. Available in print and digital here.