Intuitively, painting is assumed to have a fictional element, whereas photography is assumed to have a documentary character and is thus given more credence. Photopictures follow a photographic approach. Not by intending to produce photographic realism, but by investigating the interrelations between photographic and painterly perception. Through the equal combination of photographic, painterly and processual elements, which no longer allow a clear assignment of the result, photography apparently loses its documenting character and conquers the realm of fiction.

Dirk von Burgsdorff: “It is important to us that our projects are cross-disciplinary, allow a large personal scope for interpretation, and include media such as the internet.” Since all members have highly diverse CVs, topics are approached by each in a highly individual way. “The collaboration is purely ARTISTIC,” says von Burgsdorff, “i.e. ideological, religious or philosophical statements lie solely in the freedom of interpretation of each artist and are not a matter for the group.” So it is a question of the artistic realisation of an idea.

The exhibition was created as part of the Munich Faust Festival 2018. What would Goethe have taken up as a major theme of our time if it had been ported to the present day. Since the first two parts dealt with different aspects of development, this central idea is to be continued. Today, development takes place to a large extent in the digital world. Actual development is giving way to self-dramatisation; it is not necessary to take up positions in reality; it is enough to stage oneself in them. The Faustian striving gives way to the meaningless striving for more. Accordingly, we stage ourselves in the plot-bearing figures from Faust and place this at the centre of our work. To document the connection with Goethe’s work, each photo image is linked to a quotation from Faust.

The longing to become immortal has existed since time immemorial. Religiously influenced immortality narratives have always been created and believed in by many people. The decline of faith and religion now creates space for new, worldly immortality narratives.
The longing for something to emerge after our death is still there and wants to be filled. Digital immortality is a candidate that promises to fill this sensory void.
The dream of eternal life has been dreamed for a long time. Can artificial intelligence make it possible to unbound our limited lives?

Angels are the messengers of God in Christianity, Judaism and Islam. Their task is to bridge the distance between God and man and to deliver messages. Angels have always been among the most fascinating beings in religions. Interestingly, however, you cannot see directly who sent them and whose messengers they are.

Part of the concept is to include works by other artists, thereby integrating additional influences into the process of creation. The works of Celly van Laatzen have a special appeal here, as they already contain unusual, sometimes absurd combinations from different worlds. His images tell stories that we take as an impetus to make them one of our stories, documented in the form of a photo image, in a process between painter and photographer.

In the works from the series “Interact with Someone unknown”, an unsigned work, such as graffiti from public spaces, is the basis of the work. Through the finished photo image, an attempt is then made to establish contact with the artist of the original and to make him a known artist. Chris Uphues is one of the artists contacted in this way. Chris lives in Brooklyn and is known as “the heart artist” because he leaves his heart graffiti on public spaces in New York. One of them was taken by us and used as a basis for some photo images. The result was posted back on the same NY-Queens construction fence where we found it, two months later, with a QR code containing a request to get in touch. After the subsequent contact, the idea for a joint project was born – “Heart Attack”.