| | | |  | | | | She Disappeared into Complete Silence © Mona Kuhn AD 7573, 2014 + AD 7085, 2014 | | | Mona Kuhn » She Disappeared into Complete Silence | | | | ... until 23 October, 2020 | | | | | | | ... until 25 September 2020 | | | | | | | ... until 25 September 2020 | | | | | | | ... until 16 September 2020 | | | | | | | ... until 10 July 2020 | | | | | | | ... until 27 July 2020 | | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |  | | | | She Disappeared into Complete Silence © Mona Kuhn AD 7809, 2014 | | | Mona Kuhn » She Disappeared into Complete Silence | | | | ... until 23 October, 2020 | | | The quality of light, according to Mona Kuhn, is measured in nuances of colour and – as strange as it may seam – even in sounds, or the absence of sounds. The photographer has translated this empirical experience into photographic images. Her journey towards the light took her to the Joshua Tree desert in California.
As a classical symphony is built upon rhythm and the development of an initial motif, so the potential of light is observable through its rhythmic and evolving intensity. The viewer can easily discern the alternating chromatic effects and the play of shadows. As the saturation of light increases, the shadows fade and the sounds dim. In an orchestra, every instrument is waiting for its entry or an interval. Faced with the everincreasing intensity of the sun, everything seems to hold its breath. The brightness yields only to time – a few, fleeting moments can be captured in the fullness of the light. The shadows will not be banished for long: as soon as the sun crosses the zenith, they prepare their resurrection.
The impression emanating from this magical moment is exhilarating. Do even the insects go quiet in the midday sun? There is complete silence. An illusion? This ephemeral stillness is not isolated. The muted soundscape gives way to a series of optical phenomena: reflections. The light paints non-tangible, transparent images into the desert. Mirages. Images appear and repeat themselves – mirrored or inverted. Up and down flow into each other; far blends into close. Apparitions are superimposed on each other. Straight lines are curving in the heat and brightness. Perception takes on surreal traits. Paradoxically, the light seems static amidst the shimmering vibrations. Suddenly the shadows start taking shape again and break the vision. Sounds come back to life and put an end to the silent spectacle.
(Text : A. Meyer / Clervaux – cité de l’image, English translation by Nadia Linden) | | | | | |  | | | | exhibition view Mona Kuhn © CDI | | | | | | Mona Kuhn was born in São Paulo, Brazil, in 1969, of German descent. In 1989, she moved to the US and earned her BA from The Ohio State University, before furthering her studies at the San Francisco Art Institute. She is currently an independent scholar at The Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles. Her work is in private and public collections worldwide and has been exhibited amongst others at The Louvre Museum and Le Bal in Paris. Mona Kuhn lives and works in Los Angeles.
More information: www.monakuhn.com | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |  | | | | Soma 004 © Andreas Gefeller, Courtesy Thomas Rehbein Galerie, Köln | | | | | | | ... until 25 September 2020 | | | "A brave new world". The work of Andreas Gefeller shows parallels to Aldous Huxley’s novel. This also explains the title of the collection of photographs: “Soma”, the name of the drug which is meant to alter and make reality bearable in Huxley’s literary universe.
The photographic work "Soma" by the German photographer offers insights into an artificial, single purpose microcosm from the year 2000, showcasing itself under bright, artificial lighting. This world was entirely created by man. Night is arbitrarily turned into day. Indeed, the former appears to literally outshine the latter.
The photographs show a coastal strip of Gran Canaria bathed in light, despite being nocturnal views. A newly constructed, brightly illuminated holiday paradise is presented as a complete work of art – made up of repetitive structures and geometric shapes – baring itself under a deep night sky. | | | | | |  | | | | exhibition view Andreas Gefeller © CDI | | | | | | Under the glaring light, the facades create a surreal scenery and reveal a highly graphic structure, with the contours and sharp edges of every motive standing out. The images were taken using long exposures.
Palm trees and cacti are lined up to create an overly decorative scene that generates unease. Beach promenades with sun loungers are devoid of human presence. The excessive light is in direct contrast with the tidy, abandoned places. The artificial lighting occupies large planes of the image, pushing the shadows to the margins.
What remains is a numbing brightness and emptiness.
(Text: A. Meyer / Clervaux – cité de l’image, English translation by Nadia Linden) | | | | | |  | | | | exhibition view Andreas Gefeller © CDI | | | | | | Andreas Gefeller was born in 1970 in Düsseldorf, Germany. In 2000, he graduated in photography at the University of Essen with honors from Prof. Bernhard Prinz. In 2001, he was appointed to the DFA (Deutsche Fotografische Akademie / German Academy of Photography). He lives and works in Düsseldorf.
More information: www.andreasgefeller.com | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |  | | | | Dart, Berlin, DEAF 2008 © Anna Lehmann-Brauns | | | | | | | ... until 25 September 2020 | | | Anna Lehmann-Brauns photographs rooms and architectures. She does not consider herself to be an architecture photographer, however, and denies doing documentary work.
Born and based in Berlin, she sees her role as much more akin to that of a director of photography. Just like in film, she creates visual worlds by using light and shadow. Choosing her position carefully, she combines perspectives with subjective, spatial ideas, based on moods and memories.
These are quiet compositions, emphasizing shadows just as much as the lighting conditions they arise from. It is not hard to draw a parallel to the still life of fine art: devoid of human presence, these rooms show only inanimate objects, elements and things silently populating the room. | | | | | |  | | | | Barney’s, Julia - Wege zum Glück, FILMSETS 2008 © Anna Lehmann-Brauns | | | | | | The soft light often stands in contrast with the content depicted. The photographer takes the viewer into nocturnal and urban decors – cinemas, nightclubs, hotels, film sets. Dynamic, noisy places full of history and movement. Contrasts converge: the darkness of the night competing with the artificial lighting. The clash of these two phenomena defines the work of Anna Lehmann-Brauns. Both worlds flow into each other like a viscous and dull mist, smudging the boundaries of reality.
"Sun in an Empty Room" is not only the name of an image collection, but also a quote, recalling Edward Hopper. The great master was adept at using light and shadow to transfer a sculptural space onto the flat canvas, without losing any of the depth of his motives. The result were chromatic moods which fully integrate into the era whose characteristics they reflect.
The work of Anna Lehmann-Brauns functions in a similar way: light penetrates into and out of the dark room and reveals contemporary scenes with individual character. Softly and silently, the shadows escape into the night. (Text: A. Meyer / Clervaux – cité de l’image, English translation by Nadia Linden) | | | | | |  | | | | exhibition view Anna Lehmann-Brauns © CDI | | | | | | | Anna Lehmann-Brauns was born in Berlin. As a graduate of the master class of Joachim Brohm in Leipzig, her studies include graphics and book art. The photographer specializes in architecture and interiors. Her main interest is the lighting conditions of these spaces, which she always depicts deserted and thus vulnerable to memories and projections of the viewer. She lives and works in Berlin.www.annalehmannbrauns.de | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |  | | | | Cosmos © François Fontaine / Agence VU’ | | | | | | | ... until 16 September 2020 | | | To enter the pictorial world of François Fontaine, there is no way around the Big Screen and film. Cinematography works with a collection of animated images, whereas its cousin photography is based on the static image. But both media rely on a common source: light.
Light fuels the universe. It braves this deep and anonymous space with its creative force. The look to the stars arises from every man’s desire to discover the origin of all existence. Light offers an opening into this infinite unknown. It guides our gaze into the other world. Neither darkness nor light dominate in space. | | | | | |  | | | | exhibition view François Fontaine © CDI | | | | | | The quest for light is an adventure, driving our thoughts and our imagination. It takes us on a spiritual journey, seemingly dissolving the limits of our existence. Paradoxically, this experience tends to affirm us in our individuality.
This sublime sensation can be found in the blurred images of François Fontaine, expressing his artistic reflections.
Text: A. Meyer / Clervaux – cité de l’image, English translation by Nadia Linden | | | | | |  | | | | exhibition view François Fontaine © CDI | | | | | | François Fontaine born in Paris, France, in 1968, holds a doctorate in the History of Art. For ten years he has been exploring the theme of individual and collective memory drawn from films and paintings. His images, hypnotic and timeless, based on films – fiction and documentary -projected on a screen, are an invitation to inner iconic journeys.
More information: www.francoisfontaine.com | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |  | | | | My aunt Juliette © Denis Dailleux / Agence VU’ | | | | | | | ... until 10 July 2020 | | | | In his series "My aunt Juliette", Denis Dailleux sees his gaze returned in a unique and playful way by his great-aunt. The dialogue between the two protagonists is a constant exchange, making the series appear like a power play. This aunt Juliette is a strong character: she plays the queen, poses as a peasant, appears as grandmother, defies her age which shows her fragility, all the while maintaining her rebellious gaze. She confronts the photographer and claims the camera's visual field as rightfully hers. | | | | | |  | | | | exhibition view Denis Dailleux © CDI | | | | | | "Imbued with his distinctive delicacy, Denis Dailleux’s photographic work appears calm on the surface, yet is incredibly demanding, run through by an undercurrent of constant self-doubt and propelled by the essential personal bond he develops with those (and that which) he frames with his camera." (Christian Caujolle)
Denis Dailleux was born in 1958 in Angers, France. He lives in Cairo.
More information:
www.denisdailleux.com
www.agencevu.com | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |  | | | David Spero: from "SETTLEMENTS"
Dan and Claire’s garden, locations undisclosed, September 2008
Beekeeping © David Spero | | | | | | | ... until 27 July 2020 | | | | David Spero‘s "Settlements" draw the portrait of a few communities in Britain that have chosen to partially separate and live in parallel from so-called mainstream society out of ecological considerations. Spero uses documentary-style imagery to illustrate the creative potential and pioneering spirit displayed by these groups on their quest for new, alternative modes of existence. | | | | | |  | | | | exhibition view David Spero © CDI | | | | | | His work shows homemade houses and their inhabitants, as well as the gardens that allow them to support themselves and ensure their autonomy. This rejection of the current, globalized social trends is not an act of defiance or based on an anarchist stance towards society. Rather, these new settlements want to challenge our responsibility towards nature. Perhaps we should not hand all of it over to political systems.
In his work, David Spero shows subsistence models carried by personal initiative and collective consciousness. He tells the story of a few small groups who have made it their mission to prioritize the low-impact management, optimal restoration and long-term protection of the natural resources at our disposal. | | | | | |  | | | | exhibition view David Spero © CDI | | | | | | David Spero was born in 1963, studied photography at the Royal College of Art, London and has since worked on a number of interconnected photographic projects. His work is in numerous collections, including the Victoria & Albert Museum and British Council.
More information: www.davidspero.co.uk | | | | | | unsubscribe here
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© 16 June 2020 photo-index UG (haftungsbeschränkt)
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