GERMANY / HAMBURG
ANTOINE WAGNER
Triennial of Photography Hamburg - Deichtorstraße 2, 20095 Hamburg, Germany, T +49 40 32103242 phototriennale.de - Satellite show “Exile. Photography by Antoine Wagner” Museum für Völkerkunde Hamburg, Rothenbaumchaussee 64, 20148 Hamburg, T +49 040.42 88 79 –voelkerkundemuseum.com Under the banner of the Hamburg Triennial of Photography, Antoine Wagner invites the visitor to take a journey across time and space through large-format prints and videos: we took the opportunity to ask the photographer to reflect on his work.
L'OFFICIEL ART: The often theatrical landscapes occupy an important place in your photographic work; why have you chosen this theme and what brought you to the choices you have made?
TRIENNIAL OF PHOTOGRAPHY, 18-28 JUNE SATELLITE SHOW “EXILE. PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANTOINE WAGNER” MAY 10 – OCTOBER 4
ANTOINE WAGNER: My goal is not to offer a simple decor but an original and immaculate world to the passer-by to stop him in his tracks. What he decides to do then in this space is only up to him: to move on, to recharge his batteries, to be inspired, to dream, to reflect… In order not to risk losing yourself, it is encouraging to intuitively feel a canvas in this cosmos. In this way, each of my series proposes a specific setting. Each concept sets up boundaries, or rather trails and crash barriers and invites a journey where the road is serene. Your projects are very large in size, inviting viewers to an almost physically immerse themselves in your universe. What is the motivation behind this aesthetic approach? Your question partially contains the answer, even if this universe that you attribute to me belongs to all of us. A contrario, I try to reduce the immensity of these landscapes to install them in a minimal setting while simultaneously retaining their scale. The mere act of approaching and displacing these rocky summits helps to render them intimate and accessible.