Four Trees (2025)
Woodcut, acrylic paint, 50 x 70 x 3 cm (2025)
The world is fragile.
Let’s take better care of it. Of us.
My most recent (finished) work. And yes! Egon Schiele. This will be shown at the LANDPARTIE, July 12, in Scheggerott, where I can also tell you why I “quote” this artist.
Landpartie: More details
Book now: Tickets for the bustour (Hamburg - Scheggerott - Hamburg)
A long-cherished wish is coming true: I'm exhibiting in my second home - and I would love for you to be there! For this, I'm organizing a bus trip to Scheggerott in the beautiful Angeln region, north of the Schlei. I will open an exhibition of my latest works in the legendary "Kneipe" (pub) of the village. Since it's a LANDPARTIE, we will also spend a lot of time outdoors and enjoy the beautiful nature. There will be drinks* (with and without alcohol) and food from the grill* (vegetarian options available, of course).
To make it a whole beautiful day, the coach will depart on Saturday, July 12th at 11:30 AM. The journey takes just under 2 hours. We'll return around 11:00 PM. Departure point is Feldstraße 66, at the bunker near Millerntor Stadium.
Places on the bus are limited to 50! Bookings will be accepted until May 20th. Cost: €50 including beer for the journey from Kehrwieder Brewery. Of course, there will also be soft drinks on board for the kids.
Should the bus not be sufficiently filled for whatever reason (actually unimaginable), or should the country excursion not be able to take place for any other reason, I will of course refund the full amount.
This is a really big thing for me!
As some of you may know, I have had ties to this region for almost 25 years, and since 2018, I’ve been restoring an old farmhouse up there (well, actually, it was the house of the local shoemaker, with a small stable and some land for farming when it was built in 1866). This will be the first time I can show my art to the people who are my neighbors, friends—new and old—and everyone else in Angeln who is interested in culture (or in what I really do when I’m not working on the house).
So please join us, and let’s make an unforgettable day out of it!
Jörg
* Food and drinks are not included in the travel price, but they are regional, delicious, and affordable.
Short rotating videos showing the new chain saw sculptures from all angles.
Music: Bagatelle#16, John Zorn, Eric Friedlander, Michael Nicolas
For the portfolio with more info, please download the PDF here:
„The Alex Diamond Studio Experience“ is a new format of cozy events that I will host from time to time at my studio: The Ranch (the „old“ heliumcowboy and my Studio in Bäckerbreitergang 75 in Hamburg). The first of these events was held on February 28, 2025.
It‘s not a Vernissage, but a relaxed get-together in the evening, where I introduce my guests to brand new artwork and show a selection of pieces from recent times whilst sharing a few drinks and stories at the legendary bar.
This is also an opportunity to present brand new work, before it goes into exhibitions and / or collector‘s homes.
This first event also saw the unveiling of a brand new direction in my work: Art with the chainsaw!
A few weeks ago I started to saw my first sculptures out of pieces of the trunk of a massive birch we felled last year on our farm up north (we had to cut it down for security reasons). I must say, this work is insanely rewarding; chopping away on these trunks with the chainsaw is extremely satisfying and I am very happy with the results.
The exhibited artwork will be on display for a couple of weeks and you can get in touch for an appointment during this time.
Just one more reminder to all my german friends: Please VOTE!
It is our chance to make these drawings come true, with a swift cross of your pen on the ballot for a NON-right wing party we can begin to erase (or at least dampen) the current nightmare.
This video is from the last (and lost) election in Europe 2024. And unfortunately even more important now.
Thank you.
P.S.: For those who do not know the background of „This machine kills fascists“ - Woodie Guthrie had these words on his guitar, and many artists (including me) use this in their work.
I got a thing with trees now.
These four are all brand new and currently available in my online shop. As usual these are drawn with my cherished Montblanc Fountain pens on heavy drawing paper (Lana Dessin 220 gsm paper, 29,7 × 21 cm) and come framed. I am using a special ink, a gift from a friend, until the bottle is empty (half way there): the Montblanc permanent grey, 90 years Meisterstück limited edition.
(Framing example)
[ this is the main text from my newsletter - you can subscribe to it here and get it earlier and in your mailbox ]
Dear Friends,
We have to talk. No, I am not hitting the panic button here, but I'd like to address a few heavy hitters that are on my mind, and I hope you stay with me. Sorry, no fun artist newsletter again today, but there will also be nice things at the end, like a new print edition I'll be releasing shortly and some new drawings and stuff, so I hope you bear with me and keep welcoming these newsletters into your inbox. I am very grateful for your many responses to my previous emails, and I warmly welcome all the new subscribers. I hope you'll all enjoy it.
Alright. Let's get the big one out of the way first:
What the fuck is happening?
The mighty Donald is running America uncontrollably like a vengeful autocrat, selected by God (his own words) and surrounded by boot-licking minions, including dangerously powerful media billionaires. Fascists are on the rise again everywhere, and soon they will be pretty strongly represented in the German parliament, too. Not sure how to stop them; politicians overall seem to be pretty headless and try to fight fire with fire. All of that in a society that gets more hostile every day, with a dying debate culture leading to too much awful noise to bear... especially in the social media frenzy we all so willingly feed.
It is too much for me right now. Honestly, I have no clue how to deal with all of this on a personal level. I think of myself as a well-informed person, getting my news from reading reputable newspapers and listening to informative podcasts supporting constructive journalism (such as "Die Lage der Nation" - if you do not know this one already, I recommend it highly to my German friends). And in the light of all this, I am looking for solutions, trying to find a way to keep our humanity intact, despite all the angry screaming that surrounds us.
I have decided to not spend valuable time on Instagram any longer. I expect similar reactions like when I left Facebook in 2019 - people told me then that this would be the end of my art career. Well, it wasn't. I am still creating artwork that I find relevant and important, which is the definition of the work of an artist. Now I hit pause on Instagram as well. Yes, I know, most artists believe they cannot be successful without it. But is that really true? What will really change when creatives show Zuckerberg the finger?
I believe that artists should invest more time elsewhere. First and foremost, of course, in the studio, instead of submitting our art practice to creating entertaining posts for the algorithm. We can still stay together, connected and informed. I suggest: websites, newsletters, podcasts - and talks amongst each other.
I have not been on Instagram for more than a week now - and as I mentioned, I am Facebook-free for 5 years, have never been on Twitter with my art, and no, I will never ever spend a second on TikTok. I use LinkedIn sparingly, and recently have only briefly looked into Bluesky and Substack as alternatives (still making up my mind).
This last week I have completed three very detailed and large fountain pen drawings. One of these drawings (the smallest) is the one above, from Mount Denali, a symbol for the insanity of our days. It is the mountain that the crazy King of America renamed on day one of his regency, back to Mount McKinley, which is purely a nationalistic and anti-indigenous, asshole move. You might know why Denali is a strong symbol for these hard times; if not, please read up on it - I'll post a link at the bottom. Besides creating artwork, I have initiated a print release and done a lot of organizational shit I do not want to bore you with.
My conclusion? I won: a lot of time! I am talking about the time I did NOT use to create content for social media, which takes up many hours per week if you do it professionally. We all try to make the results look so easy, no matter what we post, but that is not the reality, is it? "Happy gallerist & ecstatic artist faces at sold-out opening" equals weeks of preparation and sweat. Fast-forward WIP-reels are the result of time-consuming, focused and intense workshop days and days and days and days before. Plus the editing at the end to make it look so beautiful (and, of course, successful) on a smartphone.
Fuck that.
Claude Monet wrote this. Sure, he did not have to bother with social media and self-promotion. He wrote some letters, met with people (mostly at his home and gardens at Giverny) to drink wine, smoke cigarettes, and share food with them - and other than that, he worked on his paintings. Because that is actually what artists should use their time for! And yes, this quote is from when he was older, and yes, our years being able to work are limited, but the core is still true no matter if you are 25 or 57 (like me).
"To be calm in order to work" - how can we be calm when the first thing we do in the mornings and the last thing before we go to bed (not counting the uncountable times in between) is looking at our phones to check out the "likes" we got? How can we make artwork when we go down the rabbit hole searching for recognition and admiration on a mass media product that doesn't give a shit about anything but making money for the owners? And now even worse, becoming a propaganda machine for the far right? Crazy.
I hope you can understand that I am not willing to feed the dragon any longer right now. Of course, I am too unsure what this move really means. But if I don't try, how will I ever know?
Fortunately, there are many other ways to keep you informed: This newsletter, for example. Or my website with almost all my art on it, a blog with news and details about specific works, exhibitions, releases etc. I am also considering Substack at the moment for an additional output (for my words). I am not out of the digital world, not at all. But honestly: do artists really have enough interesting things to talk about and show around on a daily basis on Instagram? I seriously doubt it. And I certainly don't.
I know, I have only a few more than 3,000 followers, which is very poor in Instagram currency. But even if you have tens of thousands - ever calculated how many percent of these followers actually see your output? Anyway, for me this is not about the numbers, it is about the atrocious actions of the owners of these platforms that disgust me and drive me away.
Okay. I believe I made my point. So let's get to the other stuff I mentioned earlier, the announcements and practical information.
In February I will release a limited print edition of my woodcut "Waterlilies and Agapanthus" (a high-quality giclée print). It comes as print-only and in an elegantly framed version. Details can be found on my website, where you can pre-order it already (all links below).
I will also release two large original drawings next week; they still need to be framed before I can show you more. These are drawings I created in my Instagram-free time, so they sure are pretty special. You just wait and see - I added some spoilers below.
You can also purchase the "DENALI" drawing from the top of this newsletter, but of course without the yellow wording. This can also be ordered online through my website here. My family and I have taken over a share in sponsoring the Sea-Eye 5, a rescue boat for refugees in the Mediterranean Sea. The proceeds from the Denali drawing will help maintain our monthly sponsorship of this lifesaving vessel.
Last night I finished a smaller, political drawing that I placed in my shop as well. It's a tree with a carved heart in the bark that... well, see for yourself!
There are still copies left of my newest book "GOD JOB.", published with Gudberg Nerger. You can order it through them, or, if you want a personalized dedication, through my own online shop (where you also find all my other books... and some wine...).
This was a lot, I hope it is as important to you as it is to me.
Keep up the fight,
Jörg
First work of the year:
Water Lilies and Agapanthus (2025)
Acrylic paint, carved wood. 50 x 70 x 3 cm
Here’s something new I am currently exploring. I mentioned in my last newsletter that I usually reserve the time around Christmas and the New Year to calm down, read books about famous artists (this year it’s Monet all the way), admiring and analyzing their work, wandering in their shoes and in their times for a bit, feeling how they might’ve felt – and contemplating what I (the artist) want (need!) to be doing next. There all all these ideas, thoughts, rough concepts, the nonsense and the rage, swirling around in my head. Nothing really to hold on to, but that is anyway not what I am aiming for – I try to be as free as I can in this phase. No restraints. And no pressure.
So for my first time spent in the studio this year I approached a painting from impressionist Claude Monet from 1923, called „Water Lilies and Agapanthus“, painted in his famous garden in Giverny.
I carved and painted this in my famous old farmhouse house in the countryside, middle of nowhere, up North. I hope it gives you joy.
If you are interested in this work, please contact my studio manager Dorian by mail.
[this is the main text from my newsletter - you can subscribe to it here and read it 24 hrs earlier (I know, quite an incentive, right??)]
Yeah. Another year almost done. Yeah. More wise words, another artist newsletter to f***ing read before we clock out of 2024. Yeah. Yeah.
But I am not looking back, no way, last year was a bit too far off for my taste. However, focusing on what's to come seems even harder, as there’s never been such uncertainty ahead of me as today.
The time between Christmas and the New Year is usually reserved for calming down, reading books about artists (this year it's Monet all the way), admiring and analyzing their work, wandering in their shoes and their times a bit, feeling how they might've felt – and contemplating what I (the artist) want (need!) to be doing next. There are all these ideas, thoughts, rough concepts, the nonsense and the rage, swirling around in my head. Nothing really to hold on to, but that is anyway not what I am aiming for – I try to be as free as I can in this phase. No restraints. And no pressure.
Somehow achieving this state of mind this year seems more difficult than usual.
But look, here’s what I did to nevertheless get to the place I need to go to:
I picked up a new sketchbook from under the tree, a present from my son Melvin, one he watched me unwrap with a big smile on his face. As a sketchbook, it is not really that good: the paper is thick but really cheap, so my ink bleeds out if I'm not careful, the binding won't fold up enough, so I gotta hold the pages down while drawing. It is one of those sell-out products you get at Museum Stores; Melvin picked this one up at the Tate Modern. But I do like it, it is making money for one of my favorite artists, David Shrigley, and on the front he drew in fat letters:
MY ARTWORK IS TERRIBLE AND I AM A VERY BAD PERSON
As an artist and a father, probably not the nicest words to read on Christmas Eve on a gift from your son, who's also been your gallerist, but I know how well Melvin meant this and we do share the same humor. So yeah, we had a good laugh. But what Shrigley says here is very true - I guess this "feeling" is in many artists' heads, and not just the struggling ones, because it is about coping with doubts, which probably most of us do a lot more than necessary. And once you're finished diminishing your talent and artwork and career, you go on to feeling poorly as a person too. I mentioned earlier that I love reading books about famous artists, so I feel authorized to say: most of them did feel shitty about themselves a lot throughout their glorious artist lives.
That is roughly where I found myself: instead of quietening down, I stood at the entrance of the rabbit hole, not sure whether to crawl inside or turn around and just shrug it off, as I am usually more than capable of, dealing with this kind of life for such a long time already. The book and the quote came at a pretty good moment, when I just wanted to figure out what to do next, not really getting in the mood to let go and think freely.
And so, early in the morning of December 29, 2024, I picked up my fountain pen and that lovely grey ink I got from a friend, and began to fill the 144 pages of Shrigley's mean sketchbook – well, only on one side because of the mediocre paper quality, so it comes to 72 in total.
And: I didn't stop until I finished the last page, some time after midnight.
The drawings all are pretty moody and dark, for the first time I am using French instead of English, there are also lots of flowers and other references to art history and artists I admire (Monet! Schiele! Pettibon! Even Shrigley gets a page, that old bastard - yu can find it at the bottom of this newsletter.), some are pretty bad (I can be a terrible artist if I want to) and some are just mean (I am a bad person, remember), but most are like climbing on a ladder out of my dark thoughts, leaving them on the cheap paper, and diving back into my own head, refreshed and oblivious, where I will rest now till the end of the year (and a bit beyond that), before I go back to the studio and paint and build and carve and draw the f**k out of 2025.
I wish you all a great start into the New Year,
may all your hopes and dreams come true.
Let's all work together and make the world safe and lovable again.
I see you on the other side.
Jörg
Dear friends,
I have some good news for you all today: "GOOD JOB," my new book, is coming out next week in a beautiful, fat publication, available for pre-order now and celebrated with a release party next Thursday (Nov 28, 7 PM) at my publisher’s, GUDBERG NERGER, in Hamburg.
Insane! 500 drawings that I created since 2021—the last one is from this summer. When a body of work of such volume comes in printed form, it is simply overwhelming for me as an artist. But I really cannot tell you more; it is impossible to judge from my point of view, and I have no sales pitch for you except:
This is a beautiful book of the highest quality, both in terms of print and layout. It is limited to 250 copies. It contains my heart and soul and my view of the world; it is sometimes romantic, funny, melancholic, political, harsh, soft-spoken, angry, or noisy. 500 drawings is a lot! The times in which these pages were created are tough. Some of it resonates in these drawings, and some will help you smile again. I would hope I could convince people who have wandered off into the far-right and populist abyss to change their fucked up minds, but I know that this is a task so huge I cannot ask of this book.
I can only recommend getting it online, or even better—come to the launch. We will install a lot of original drawings at the gallery of GUDBERG NERGER. I will, of course, be there to sign it, talk to you about it, and generally have a good time celebrating together. Just click the links here to get all the info:
Pre-order. (Yes I will sign those too if you want me to!)
Book release at GUDBERG NERGER
28th of November, 7–11 PM.
Kisses and hugs go out to Jan Müller-Wiefel at GUDBERG NERGER for a job well done producing it (and patience with me), to Yasha Young and Jonathan LeVine for their forewords in the book, to Geberit for the support, to the printers at AZ Druck, and to Kehrwieder for the beer on tap at the opening. More kisses and hugs will be handed out next Thursday.
Even though I am seeing myself as a political person and an artist with a voice I am not sure that I need to comment on the insane election result in the USA. It’s not my country. Am I super disappointed? Sure. We can only hope there are enough people with some sense around in the next government so that our world doesn’t go spiraling down the fascist abyss even more. It will also be our task here in Germany to avoid this in our own country come next year’s elections.
There’s work to do.
My retrospective “Unwrapped - the Alex Diamond Archives” opened Thursday, Sept 26. All work was online available via Silent Auction - at the MEGA contemporary site .
Just quickly - it was ahuge sucess. Thank you all who supported this!
„Unwrapped - The Diamond Archives“, was a Retrospective with work by Alex Diamond from 1998 – 2022!
In this unconventional exhibition, all artwork was offered in a Silent Auction, breaking with the rigid art market rules (Punk’s not dead after all 👊) and starting with minimum bids well below the original prices. You could place your bid secretly on-site and online. At the end of the exhibition, Melvin informed all bidders if their bid was high enough and successful.
I am waiving my share of the auction proceeds so Melvin can invest the entire amount in his own gallery, MEGA Contemporary. Crowdfunding with a twist! By participating in the Silent Auction, you were not only doing something good for your walls at home, but you were also helping to establish a new and young art destination in Hamburg.
Save the date(s) in your calendar! This one will be special. Here’s the official text from Melvin:
It’s going to be emotional: The final joint exhibition of the father-son duo Melvin and Jörg Heikhaus is approaching. “UNWRAPPED: The Diamond Archives” will be a retrospective of a special kind. After more than eight years of intensive collaboration at heliumcowboy, we have decided that Alex Diamond will not be represented by MEGA Contemporary—but before that, I would like to take one last look back at the impressive history of this extraordinary artist with you.
Jörg handed me the keys to his personal archive—a fascinating collection of works from the last 20 years. These are true treasures that showcase the transformation and evolution of Alex Diamond in all its facets. From his very early paintings, drawings, and collages to the first originals and prints with and on wood, to his iconic wood images that have now become his trademark—there is so much to discover and revisit. As I first browsed through the collection, memories of the legendary exhibitions at the heliumcowboy artspace on Sternstraße immediately came back—the beginning of a brilliant era as an artist and gallerist.
Look forward to absolute highlights from two decades of artistic work at the limit! The exhibition will take place in our headquarters at Bäckerbreitergang 75. There couldn’t be a better place for this special show, and I look forward to filling the walls from top to bottom with the art of Alex Diamond.
To ensure that these treasures also find their way into your collection, they will be auctioned off in a Silent Auction. For this special retrospective, we are breaking the rigid art market rules and starting with minimum bids well below the original prices. You can place your bids secretly on-site and online. At the end of the exhibition (after two weeks), we will inform you of the results.
What’s particularly MEGA: Jörg is waiving his share of the auction proceeds and is investing the entire amount in the reorientation of my gallery MEGA Contemporary. Crowdfunding with a twist! By participating in the Silent Auction, you are not only doing something good for your walls at home, but you are also helping me establish a new art venue in Hamburg during these challenging times.
We look forward to welcoming you to this wonderful, emotional exhibition where we can indulge together in the beautiful memories of an impressive artistic career that is now embarking on new paths.
Opening Reception:
Thursday, September 26, 6–10 pm
Weekend Views with Coffee & Cake:
Saturday and Sunday, September 28 & 29, 4–7 pm
Exhibition runs until October 11.
Visiting hours will be posted on Instagram, or you can schedule an appointment: info@me-ga.art
"Alex Diamond and the Demoncatchers", ARTotale Lüneburg, 2009.
I just released a new book, and so it takes total sense that my new shop is online! If you are interested in my latest publications, please go shopping here!
Currently there are only three products: all my still available exhibition catalogues or books from my last three solo shows:
My new book is a documentation of my last solo exhibition „They all must be slaughtered“, which was my final show with heliumcobwoy that took place at TheMISSION in Hamburg (now MEGA contemporary).
Due to a sweet little error on the cover, every book comes individually embellished (signed) on the front (surprise!).
52 pages, 24 x 17 cm.
Limited to 150, signed and numbered.
12 € plus shipping
Let me know if you would like me to write a special dedication
Rare and limited Edition Book about “It’s all good.”, my largest solo exhibition to date, that took place at Barlach Halle K. in Hamburg, 2022.
Limited to 50 (!) copies, numbered and signed and with individually painted & hand printed cover by me (and Lucy!).
152 full color pages, 24 x 17 cm.
55 €
Catalogue released on the occasion of the triple-header-exhibition “in other words: <_blank>” at the heliumcowboy gallery, June – August 2021, featuring individual presentations of the work of Boris Hoppek, Jens Rausch and Alex Diamond.
“In other words: <_blank>” was the first exhibition by the gallery in Hamburg to open its doors to visitors in June 2021, following several lockdowns and three postponements. It was conceptualized the year before – already in the face of the difficult situation that has changed all of our lives and has also posed a major challenge to the creative industry.
Three cataloges were published, one for each artist, focusing on their part of this exhibition.
This is the catalogue about my contribution to the show, consisting of the special installation “F.T.S.” (Fuck this Shit).
60 pages, 23,5 x 18 cm
Photography: Julia Schwendner
Art Direction: Fabian Wolf
12 €
I will be travelling to Copenhagen end of the week to take part in the ENTER Art Fair. I am represented by Galerie Bludin Berisha and will show 40 new works on paper. I am very exciting and hope to see you there, if you are in town or can make it!
More details:
Enter Art Fair 29th August – 1st September 2024
Opening hours:
Thursday August 29th:
First Choice Preview: 13.00 – 15.00 (By invitation only)
VIP Preview: 15.00 – 20.00 (by invitation only)
Friday August 30th: 11.00 – 20.00
Saturday August 31st: 11.00 – 19.00
Sunday September 1st: 11.00 – 18.00
Archiving my drawings 1 to 490 *.
I always said as soon as I reach 500 drawings I will release them as a book. Ideally in a high-end Manga-like jewel of a publication. And now I will: together with the amazing people from Gudberg Nerger.
Click image to download most current drawing overview. Status: 08.07.24
Almost there. Ten drawings to go. You just wait and see ;)
PS: If you are in Copenhagen end of August: Galerie Bludin Berisha will show a bunch of these works at their booth at ENTER art fair . Summer only just begun …
And yes, please continue buying the drawings as they in the end will most likely finance the book.
* why the asterisk? Ah yes, cos I wanted to let you know that many of the drawings I am archiving here are only printouts - from the ones sold. If you want to know which ones are available: drop me a mail, or download the PDF here.
