Thomas Kellner has released a portfolio from 2003 to 2018 called Tango Metropolis. In this serie, the artist travelled all across the world to offer pictures of the new wonders of the world. The German photograph Rolf Sachsse produced a brochure about Thomas Kellner’s work. The present brochure represents a precise description of the photograph's work and of the process he used. Tango Metropolis refers to the tango, a Latin couple dance and to metropolis, which means the city. Thanks to this title and description from Rolf Sachsse, Thomas Kellner makes the buildings dance. Through the brochure and the serie, the public can perceive how Thomas Kellner set his imagination in form but also which art movements are related to this form of art.

Thomas Kellner's project Tango Metropolis remains an opportunity for the viewer to discover more about his sensitive approach and the heart of his art. Through the brochure, the public can discover the career of the photograph and the concepts he deals with. Two primary inspirations influence this portfolio. On the one hand, the movement of Mannerism and on the other hand, the concept of decomposition and deconstruction. His goal is to give his work a graceful imprint and that thanks to his inspirations, his way to process and his themes.

Through the various comparisons made by Rolf Sachsse in this brochure, Thomas Kellner can be identified to various artistic trends. His deconstructed works can be identified as a modern representation of the art movement Mannerism. This movement, which was introduced in Italy in the 16th century by artists like Michelangelo or Giorgio Vasari, was in contrast with the previous art period, Renaissance. Mannerism rejected the perfection and the symmetry of bodies and human representations but also of natural elements.

In the brochure, Rolf Sachsse explains that like Giorgio Vasari, a well-known mannerist artist, Thomas Kellner represents contemporary elements of what surrounds us and reproduces them without the intention of imitating or reproducing them identically. From this perspective, Mannerism constitutes the essence of the photographer’s work for this portfolio. He has taken some modern elements among the most knowns and converted thon into piece of his art.

Following the example of Wendel Diettlerin given in the brochure, Thomas Kellner has succeeded his movement of deconstructing ancient forms to adapt them to monuments and thus modernize his concept.  Thanks to the contact sheets from his photo sessions, but also a perfected operational method, Thomas Kellner offers the public a modern and sometimes colorful set.

Rolf Sachsse has explained Tango Metropolis recalls the dancing structure of the photographed monuments. In reality, the entire contemporary city dances before the photograph’s camera. These movements of buildings that we imagine are proper to the artist's colossal work on the pictures. For each piece of art, Thomas Kellner divided each contact sheet. At that moment, with the results, he rearranged these images according to his visions and inspirations to promote one work. In this portfolio, Thomas Kellner manages to render all the authenticity of the photographed monuments even without today's most powerful software. The artist does not operate with a digital camera but only the contact sheets obtained with his vintage one. Thomas Kellner took a specific artistic stance and inhibit it as a red line during his continuous set.

To the style of Mannerism to which Thomas Kellner's work is related, we can add on top of Cubism. Indeed, cubism is an art movement created mostly by Picasso and Braque. This movement is a fusion between space and objects, Fusion happens only thanks to deconstruction and demolition of the normal notions of spaces and ratios. The artist produces diverse points of view around a chosen object. Regular and geometric forms are distorted. The buildings photographed are symmetrical or straight however he utilized the concept of distortion to create an innovative perception of architecture. Cubism and Mannerism themes are in the center of the Tango Metropolis serie.

An artist can also be considered as a story teller, that is what Thomas Kellner did. With the picture of “the Falling Soldier”, in which he told the story of this Spanish soldier dead during the Spanish Revolution, Robert Capa, tells us about war and its ravages. Rolf Sachsse made a comparison between the two artists since Thomas Kellner revendicate the same authenticity in his works and tried to reach the public soul.

With this set, the artist has proven the genius of his art and the modernity he demonstrates. Using a variety of tools, he has created a series dedicated entirely to the world's most famous monuments. These monuments are already known from everyone, but Thomas Kellner offers his public to rediscover them through his camera and work.

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Thank you to Rolf Sachsse.

Thank you to everyone for your help on this photobook, other photobooks and exquisite issues.