When art meets science

When art meets science: Kathrin Linkersdorff’s (b. 1966) large-format photographs reveal intricate worlds from the realm of botany that would otherwise be invisible to the human eye. Under the title of ‘Works’, the Deichtorhallen exhibition centre dedicates a solo show to the German artist’s oeuvre. The presentation, which is open from October 27, 2023 to January 21, 2024, will be displayed at the Phoxxi – the temporary location of Hamburg’s Haus der Fotografie.

Curated by Ingo Taubhorn, the exhibition includes well-known images from the series ‘Fairies’, ‘Floriszenzen’, ‘Wabi Sabi’, and ‘Re-Naissance’, along with Linkersdorff’s most recent series, ‘Microverse I’ and ‘Microverse II’ – both of which are shown for the first time. The artist’s ‘Fairies’ series (I-V) were the subject of an extensive portfolio in LFI 7/2021.

Using processual methods from the field of microbiology, experimental approaches and test sequences, Linkersdorff creates artistic images recording specific points in the organic decay process of plants. Her images shine a light on the complex interplay between life and death in the natural world. At the centre of Linkersdorff’s oeuvre is the Japanese concept of wabi-sabi, whereby imperfection and transience are considered an integral, even beautiful part of life.

The artist first encountered the principle as an architecture student in the 1990s, when a fellowship enabled her to spend an extensive period of time in Japan. In this context she also learned the art of Japanese ink wash painting, known as sumi-e, which honed her perception of colour and form.

Through the aesthetic concept of wabi-sabi, Linkersdorff discovered the beauty of accepting impermanence and fragility. Today, wabi-sabi is the life force behind her photographs, which reveal the internal architecture of living organisms at the most vulnerable point of their existence: the state between life and decay.