Erbgericht (E)
for Clervaux – Cité de L’Image
2015
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Erbgericht
Painting has learned to break free from the constraint of mimesis to assert its creative power and artistic status, as well as to emphasize the legitimacy of its existence in relation to the growing importance of photography.
Photography is more than a technical process - finds itself involved in the same ontological questions as its parent discipline. The challenge of wanting to represent the real world alternates with analyzing the potential inherent value of the medium. This introspective perspective sets new standards defined in photography and a powerful language, capable of communicating with the world.
The geometric compositions of Andrea Grützner exhibit graphic constructions with clarity, colors, distinct lines and harmonious alternation. The photographs show the fields of tinted and textured planes, evoking figurative motifs, while reserving an abstract language. Shadows demanded independence from the objects that are in their origin. They transform into colorful spots and only discern shapes in their degree of brightness. This game of shadows frees and subverts the effects of plasticity of things for the visual style of the series. Spatial depth is reduced optically.
Still images dig deep: the real subject of the work focuses on the architectural structure called “Erbgericht.” The guest house has existed for over a hundred years old and is located in the rural areas of the country in eastern Germany. The building has a rich history, its social role has evolved over generations. Times and events are intertwined with its infrastructure. The house preserves the visual traces of its past. Its body is an assembly of styles and materials that were built through time and reflect memories of advanced life within these walls. Like the memory reconstructs images by fragments, photographs are in the form of details.
Different close framings find a coherent narrative character when they are arranged in a series. The series offers a complete idea of the place by symbolic translation of the laminated densified nature of the building. Photographs redraw meaningful layers of the building. By emphasizing the graphic style to conform illustration, images come to remain independent instead of being confused with the subject on a literal level.
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