Olaf Otto Becker
dal 26/10/2011 al 20/1/2012
Segnalato da
26/10/2011
Olaf Otto Becker
Galerie f 5,6, Munich
The artist's revisits of Iceland in 2010 and 2011 were a journey dedicated to the quest of finding traces of time. The work of his previous visits, between 1999 and 2002 got published in the book Under the Nordic Light. This solo show is a comprehensive compendium of both projects.
Under the Nordic Light
A Journey through Time, Iceland 1999 - 2011„
For me, taking a photograph is the attempt to fully understand something. Understanding reality, that presents as landscape.
Olaf Otto Becker’s revisits of Iceland in the summer of 2010 and 2011 were a journey dedicated to the quest of finding traces of time. The work of his previous visits, between 1999 and 2002 got published in the 2005 book Under the Nordic Light. This year we are happy to present Under the Nordic Light – A Journey through Time (Hatje Cantz, 2011) – a comprehensive compendium of both projects.
„Can time be photographed?“ was a question and therefore working thesis of Olaf Otto Becker, resulting in photographs that deliberately frame the same places he depicted years before. The images of identic locations offer the rare and fascinating opportunity to experience time differently. The work is – in parts- presented as diptychs but in doing so it is not about providing before and after pictures but rather a visual test arrangement to revise one’s own perception.
„The same location twice: the same frame, the same light- in between ten years of our time; that is how I currently perceive myself. I am at the same time standing next to me as the witness of my own lifetime and surroundings only to then step out of time during the contemplation as if time did not even exist.“
Temporal experience, be it standstill or a constant, is mediated very differently. An obvious example, based on the visual interpretation of social factors, are the images of Iceland’s architectural development – in this term the country that got hit very hard by the global financial crisis seems to have not changed at all. In other cases the Icelandic natural landscape seems to adapt to or withdraw easily from the changes of time. But what exactly is the difference between the leadoff and „duplicate“ photograph? What makes the image unique? It may be a collection of experiences, associations, changed views and emotions that makes every new frame unique. It is the photographers view, as manifestation of cultural and socio –esthetical influences, that is getting revealed - possibly in photography like in no other medium.
But Becker must not necessarily be enqueued in the tradition of german photography of the last 25 years. His work it is not about portraying medial positions, as do most Becher epigones, he rather sees himself closer to the tradition of american landscape photography where the landscape can be taken as a stage of human existence. It is the focus on primordial landscapes, inherent to all of Becker’s projects, that centers the interaction or reciprocity of mankind and nature especially. Nature – untouched or man-made alteration – is the fundament of all being. The landscape, being the most obvious embodiment of nature and origin, is so powerful that it seems to adapt to all man made changes as if it were natures own productions.
Olaf Otto Becker works with a large format camera, a rather demanding process and an almost ceremonial act. It is a form of respect while approaching his subject. This reverence might be the key to understanding why looking at his photographs evokes instant comprehension of the beautiful and ephemeral. Without being accusatory Becker reminds us of the importance to feel the need for being respectful and in tune with our surroundings. What Olaf Otto Becker began in his previous projects Broken Line and Above Zero comes to an even more plausible and exciting conclusion in Under The Nordic Light – A Journey Through Time.
Olaf Otto Becker is exhibited successfully in the USA and Europe. His works are part of many reknown public and private collections internationally.
The first edition of Under the Nordic Light (Schaden.com 2005) was honored with a nomination of the Recontres D'Arles Book Award. Broken Line (HatjeCantz, 2007) won the Deutschen Fotobuchpreis 2008. Above Zero (Hatje Cantz 2009) was nominated for the latter in 2010.
Image: Canyon of Jokulsá á Brú́ 2010 © Olaf Otto Becker, courtesy Galerie f 5,6
Opening: Thursday, October 27, 2011, 6 – 9 pm
Galerie f5,6
Ludwigstrasse 7 - Munich
Opening hours:
Tuesday – Friday 12 – 6pm, Saturday 11 – 3pm or by appointment
Free admission