In this first blog I would like to share the beautiful and  intriguing work of German artist Jessica Backhaus.

Last month I had an exhibition at Exposure12 in Berlin, together with artist Eva Gjaltema. Jessica Backhaus had been approached to speech at the opening of our exhibition. Later that evening I had the chance to speak to her and it was a very special encounter. Jessica asked me to say a few words at her upcoming show “Six degrees of freedom” at Gallery Wouter van Leeuwen in Amsterdam.

While looking at her work I realized there are quite a few similarities in our work. While Jessica photographs still lives and I mostly portray people, we both seem to work with the themes of stillness, memory and longing. Her photographs show us everyday objects and scenes, yet at the same time they seem to transcend the ordinary. Although her images are based on her personal memories, Jessica has the ability to touch upon something very profound that is universally recognizable. To me her images evoke a feeling of melancholy; like a time and space which is neither here nor there.

jessicabackhaus.net