This black has a physical presence. By covering what is depicted with so much shadow and obscurity, it becomes the actual tangibility of these images. And yet, in all its vividness, it also brings us close to nothingness. Here, enveloping darkness shapes our attention to what is withdrawing. This happens almost haptically: you literally feel your way into the pictures with your gaze, and as your eyes become accustomed to the darkness of the night, the impression of concrete space becomes increasingly clear. Accordingly, the pictures cannot be focused on; space remains an expanse of uncertain depth. There is something fascinating and quietly hypnotic in this visual experience, and, significantly, something that is not consumed. Thus these pictures not only show the subjects on the verge of disappearing, they also formulate a limit of visibility itself - and in doing so meet the gaze in the transition to imagination. more... Text by Jens Asthoff for the catalog "index kunstpreis 2010"