Configurations The series of photographs shows the human body as a fusing with, an adaptation to, an insertion into pre-existing surroundings. Each of these “discovered” settings is a living environment in its own specific materiality. By orienting itself on the texture of things, by concentrating on a certain form, the human body creates configurations with an inseparable connection to this form, to the area around it, to the material of the objects, to the objects as physical configurations themselves. The physical shapes that emerge through this connection are an correspondence of the person with the environment. This person, this subject remains objective in his/her behavior towards the objects, which in turn convey a subjective message, spoken in a language not of words, but of materials – a communicative interaction of physical configurations. Subject and object form a complementary composition, in which the subject is not emphasized, but takes on a more equal position to the object. The person and the items are not separate; they form an original whole. In this regard, the composition involves the invisible, that “other”, that which can never be accomplished. It deals with the question of the relationship between mind and matter, with the sensual-spiritual relationship towards our surrounding environment. By placing the human body in relation to space and material, the tension between the inactive substance / essence and its inner dynamics, as well as the potentiality of man and material are emphasized.

The question of the relationship between mind and matter requires that we remove ourselves from the appearance of things and ask what is hidden behind mankind’s label that all things are goods and products to be valued only as such. This tension also compels the question: What about the utopia of the free spirit? My artisitc medium is the staged photography. My artisitic strategy is taken from my experiences with scenic spaces and from a concept based on experimental art forms that bring people and their surroundings into astonishing connections and intriguing situations. I have been working with Michael Hinz, a photographer from Frankfurt, since 2002. Our method of photography is characterized by two crucial points. Perception is confused by a (dissociating) interaction between spaces and bodies; the eye loses all reference point for perspective and spacial distances. Nonethelss, the arrangements remain recognizably staged and although they may irritate the eye, they do not decieve. Also, there is an uncertainty that penetrates the theme of the still-lifes in two ways. First, there is an uncertainty about the composition of the area, in which some of the proportions and dimensions are not discernable. And secondly, the main point of view is so unclear, that bodies and objects appear to float around unrestrained. Therefore, the observer is compelled to orient him-/herself, to forge his/her viewpoint based on (a subjective) reality.