Jan Schünke

Photographs

22.02.2022 – 03.03.2022

Jan Schünke’s new, minimalist series of photographs continues with his theme of “Raptured Landscapes”.
Particularly for “Above Trees”, he concentrates on the “loners” – trees that stand lonely on meadows and fields and strikingly determine the horizon line.
To capture these individualists in their detachment, Jan Schünke uses drones to capture a bird’s eye view. In this way, only the treetops are brought into the picture.
The circular shapes seem almost like filigree drawings. The reduced aesthetic is not due to any editing. Quite the opposite. It is the result of waiting for the narrow window of fresh snow, when the white surface is still completely untouched and the dark twigs and branches stand out clearly against it.
Jan Schünke presents these mute creatures to us in an unusual way and thus takes a deeper look at their complexity – as communicating, feeling and thinking personalities.
The exhibition presents in parallel, a small selection of the first works from the series “Raptured Landscapes”.
Supposedly, one thinks one is looking at snow-covered mountain peaks deep in the Alps. In fact, they are photographs of Bavarian gravel pits. More precisely, they are spoil heaps caused by gravel mining, which are covered in winter snow. They were taken between 2009 and 2015. By choosing a section of this white mountain landscape of gravel, Jan Schünke removes the subject from its overall context.
Jan Schünke repeatedly deals with artificially formed landscapes, addressing the enormous influence of man on nature.
Aesthetically, this photo series is influenced by the Japanese painter Yokoyama Taikan. Jan Schünke translates his gently flowing colour chords onto handmade paper by means of a special digital print (piezo pigment print). This process makes it possible to create the finest tonal nuances, which gives the works their poetic painterly quality.

Jan Schünke, Entrückte Landschaften, 2009-2015, 95 x 120 cm, Edition 6