Ranch Lands, Sonoma County, California, 2021
During an artist residency in Sonoma County, California I shot photos of old farm houses, sheds and farming equipment, some of which dated back several decades. I chose to shoot at night, using electric lights as a light and color source, while illuminating certain details with a flashlight during long exposures. For this series my goal was to express not only the rural stillness, but also a lonely mood and eeriness that lingers in these sparsely populated landscapes. Although cultivated with manicured grape plants, it borders old life oak forests that are under constant wildfire threat.
Left Behind, Lake County, California, 2020
This series explores abandoned homesteads in rural Northern California. In the forests of Lake County I encountered remnants of earlier homebuilders – mostly withered and in the process of decay. Yet they tell a collective story – of a rough life, of loneliness, of failure. To emphasize this dark mood shot their photos at night, venturing alone and on foot – surrounded by deep darkness, eerie sounds of wilderness, pairs of piercing animal eyes … a constant need for alertness, a possibility of threat. My heart was beating fast – while I was pointing my flashlight at my target item and counting out my exposure times aloud.
Blue Mountains (Australia) – Night Impressions, 2019
This photo series examines manicured landscapes at the edge of a National Park in the Blue Mountains region of Australia. The landscaping stands in stark contrast to the untamed nature surrounding it. I focused especially on artificial water collection holes that double as home recreation areas, and on an old loggers’ camp left abandoned in the forest.
The photos were shot at night with a flashlight and long exposures.
Eagle Lake – Fog Impressions, 2017
These photos were shot during an artist residency in the Adirondack region in fall 2017. Some mornings I would wake to dense fog, that would burn off only slowly, revealing the landscape bit by bit, layer by layer, and finally breaking up into wafts of clouds that would drift off and create identical reflections in the mirror-smooth lake. I was especially fascinated with lake scenes, where piers would reach out into nothingness, and colorful fall foliage would hang over a body of water that was entirely undefined in its size and dimensions. I would sleep in a boathouse sometimes, on the ground of an open boat garage – looking out over the lake. Some mornings I would open my eyes to a shiny whiteness, that seemed almost apocalyptical.
Eagle Lake – Night Impressions, 2017
I shot this series of night shots during an artist residency in the Adirondack Mountains. I tried to capture the tranquil mood during these rural nights in a landscape dominated by water and country-style living that revolves around nature, boating and water activities. Over the course of my 4-week stay the light changed due to the moon phases and weather – from very dark starry nights to overcast and then moonlit landscapes. I illuminated human elements, such as boats and buildings with lights and flashlights.
Toffia’s Domestic Canyons – Night Impressions, 2014
This series of night photographs was shot during an artist residency in Toffia, a medieval hilltop town in central Italy. The photographs will be printed digitally, and – accompanied by vignettes of text – they will also become part of a book (digital and/or printed). The texts reflect my outsider’s experience of Toffia and a summary of Toffia’s history.