The exhibition presents a selection of contemporary photographic still lifes. Their spectrum reaches from artistic flower and food arrangements to figuratively staged darkroom details.

The wish to create and convey symbolically charged, philosophical, and religious topics relevant to society, is nothing new. From Ancient Greece, where the first still lifes were discovered, to its recognition as an independent art form in the Baroque period, artists have created and dealt with depictions of animal carcasses and inanimate objects. The conservation of the moment has always been a priority. The methods, through which artists convey transience, life, death, and beauty, have changed over time, as have the selected objects. More recent contemporary symbols of vanity act in accordance with the canon of allegorical imagery. As the exhibition title suggests, these are only relevant to certain societies and (sub)cultures.

Curated by Katharina Schilling and Benny Golm

Artists:
Jan Bünnig
Ekaterina Burlyga
Torben Geeck
Bastian Gehbauer
Göran Gnaudschun
Caitlin Levin & Henry Hargreaves
Carina Linge
Eric Meier
Michael Pohl
Ria Patricia Röder
Maria Strum & Cemre Yesil
Anna Tea
Yana Wernicke