black sun polaroids clouds sky blue white picture frame art exhibition
Exhibition view: Fail early and often, group show at SAP, Walldorf, 50x70cm, May 2019

It is impossible to photograph the sun as it is. What usually appears on the image is an overexposed white spot. However the sun is nature‘s primary source of light and the condition for taking photographs. Sunlight makes everything else visible, but ironically, it is impossible to look directly into the sun without hurting the retina. After a brief moment looking into it, a black dot will appear on the retina, which will remain for a while. Like a metaphor for this phenomenon, the black dot also appears on these polaroids. One can observe the formation of the black dot shortly after the picture is taken, thanks to the instant camera. Unlike the retina, the surface of the polaroid is not damaged. It‘s a black dot in the picture itself (the intense light), not the heat that would leave a black hole on the emulsion of the film. It is a parable of the visible. The spot where the threshold of the light is, turns black. The upper limit of the perceptible is metaphorized. What emerges over time is an abstract, implausible portrait of the sun, in which you eventually start to believe in.

other projects

Back to Top