Valentin Elias Renner

Valentin Elias Renner (b. Germany, 1998) grew up in southern Germany, between Garmisch-Partenkirchen and Ulm. Long before pursuing a career as an artist, he was fascinated by the idea of exploration. As a child, he imagined sailing across the world, discovering unknown islands, naming new species, and mapping places yet to be seen.

His perception of exploration changed when his father introduced him to Google Earth. Realising that much of the world had already been mapped and documented marked the end of his childhood ambition of becoming an explorer, but not his desire to discover. Instead, it led him towards a different form of exploration: creating and mapping worlds of his own.

His fascination with maps began at an early age. He spent hours drawing fictional countries, studying atlases, and exploring the principles of geography. After finishing school, he travelled extensively through Southeast Asia, experiencing a sense of discovery that had previously existed largely in his imagination.

These journeys became the starting point for an ongoing artistic project: an interactive world map constructed from nails and thread. The work serves as a visual record of the places he has visited and continues to evolve with each new destination. Through his practice, travel, geography, imagination, and personal experience come together to explore alternative ways of mapping and understanding the world.