Portfolios Archive - Page 2 of 3

Christian Voigt

We will allow you to take photos of us while we are eating if you meditate with us afterwards,“ a friendly monk of a remote Buddhist monastery told Christian Voigt a few years ago. And with it, of course, gave his foreign guest two gifts at once: the generous offer to allow him to participate in the everyday life of the religious community – and the opportunity for a wonderful photo. „I learned how to practice walking meditation during my time in the monastery. I continue to practise it to this day,“ says the photographer.

Isn`t travel simply a gift of life for those who allow themselves to experience something new and foreign, far from the well-worn paths of their home? „A trip is like drinking from the source of life,“ stated German poet and dramatist Friedrich Hebbel in the 19th century. The seductive essence of this drink, an elixir of life that has a profound impact on the viewer, flows from Christian Voigt`s photographs.

The Hamburg-based photographer manages to find images on his trips that leave us in awe of the world. That might even be his biggest talent, hidden amidst his photos that convey almost hyper-realistic perfection. We stand in front of the images like a child amazed by his first fireworks display and rediscover our sense of wonder for some precious moments.

We will allow you to take photos of us while we are eating if you meditate with us afterwards,“ a friendly monk of a remote Buddhist monastery told Christian Voigt a few years ago. And with it, of course, gave his foreign guest two gifts at once: the generous offer to allow him to participate in the everyday life of the religious community – and the opportunity for a wonderful photo. „I learned how to practice walking meditation during my time in the monastery. I continue to practise it to this day,“ says the photographer.

Isn`t travel simply a gift of life for those who allow themselves to experience something new and foreign, far from the well-worn paths of their home? „A trip is like drinking from the source of life,“ stated German poet and dramatist Friedrich Hebbel in the 19th century. The seductive essence of this drink, an elixir of life that has a profound impact on the viewer, flows from Christian Voigt`s photographs.

The Hamburg-based photographer manages to find images on his trips that leave us in awe of the world. That might even be his biggest talent, hidden amidst his photos that convey almost hyper-realistic perfection. We stand in front of the images like a child amazed by his first fireworks display and rediscover our sense of wonder for some precious moments.

INFO

In these moments, Christian Voigt`s monumental pictures open up to us like vast pools for the senses. We gently lose ourselves in an archetypal dune landscape that evokes the realm of myths and fairy tales, and then find ourselves in the historical architecture of an ancient Egyptian temple. Our thoughts cross continents and cultures in these images. They open up breathtaking horizons, where authentic living culture meets the aesthetic culture of images. A new adventure of the senses awaits us with each image. We can almost hear the evening drone of moped and motorcycle engines revving in the streets of Vietnam, the stomping rhythm oft he music emanating from the glowing red Las Vegas strip club where a stripper appears to gyrate in the blurred background of our fantasies. Our eyes and our thoughts set off on an excursion in Voigt’s „world images.“

The apparently restless globetrotter Christian Voigt shares a condensed world culture from his trips with us. He raves about the power of a large print in XXL format that practically pulls his viewers into the picture. „I need the massiveness to capture my emotions. When you sit in front oft he large format the result is a feast for the eyes.“ Voigt`s imposing and monumental works effortlessly fill the room, shaping the atmosphere of the interior. The people in these images are often small, providing proportion to a large-scale scenario of a location and everything going on in it.

The charismatic big image hunter has an eye for cultural rites and magical moments abroad and allows us to share in his emotions during these precious moments. In addition to several images that have been prepared for years, there are also often spectacular examples of his spontaneous reaction to locations and encounters

„Christian captures the beauty oft he world in pictures“, gushes a Californian patron of his work when asked why he is such a fan oft he German photographer`s work. His photogrphs often do seem to be a visual approach to the definition of beauty. „I love depicting beauty,“ says the photographer, not meaning a one-dimensional concept. Voigt says that he also looks for and finds this beauty in the chaos of an Asian street market, for example. Of course the beauty of these images is in their creative precision, their clear, vibrant colors, and perfectly executed compositions.

Voigt`s motifs offer the viewer a perfect arrangement of harmonies and targeted dissonances. The passionate photographer composes complex symphonies for the eyes. The photo artist does not care wheater these locations have been frequently photographed or never been photographed. „I have taken pictures of New York`s Central Park. A billion photos of it have been taken already,“ says Christian Voigt. „I’m not worried, because I know that my photo will look different.“ The 20th century artistic genius Pablo Picasso once said, „Some painters transform the sun into a yellow spot, others transform a yellow spot into the sun.“ However, a painter that transforms a yellow spot into a sunrise is an artist. Christian Voigt loves this quote. And transforms a single photo into an atmospheric picture that , using up to 30 picutures, condenses one spot into a newly enriched complete picuture that reflects its pulse and appeal. The result could be photographs of the collective works of an ancient library or details of the street life of a faraway land. Chaos and order, opulence and simplicity are all equals in a pictorial cosmos that shows us the multifacteted nature of the world.

Selected Exhibitions & Fairs

2009
St. Tropez, Chateau St. Amé / groupshow / August

2010
New York, Opera Gallery, groupshow / April – May
St. Tropez, Barbara de Palma Gallery / April – September

2011
Los Angeles, Karl Hutter Fine Art / solo exhibition / April – May
St. Tropez, Barbara de Palma Gallery / Juli – October
Den Haag, Wanrooij Gallery / Arti 11 / October
Arnhem, Wanrooij Gallery / solo exhibition / October

2012
Amsterdam, Wanrooij Gallery / Realisme 12 / January
Basel, Wanrooij Gallery / Scope / June
Miami, Wanrooij Gallery / Scope / November
Amsterdam, Wanrooij Gallery / Lxry Masters / December
Hamburg, solo exhibition „Visions of Infinity“, Hamburg Art Week / December – February

2013
London, Wanrooij Gallery / London Art Fair / January
Amsterdam, Wanrooij Gallery / Realisme 13 / January
Rotterdam, Wanrooij Gallery / Art at the Warehouse / February
Utrecht,Wanrooij Gallery / art 13 / April
Basel, Wanrooij Gallery /Scope / June
Dubai, Salsali Private Museum / solo exhibition / September – November
London, Wanrooij Gallery / Strata Art Fair / October
Miami, Wanrooij Gallery / Scope / December

2014
Amsterdam, Wanrooij Gallery / Realism / Januar
Dubai, Icon House / February – December
St. Barth, Space SBH / solo exhibition / March – April
Basel, Wannroij Gallery / Scope / June
Amsterdam, Wanrooij Gallery / solo exhibition „The Rijksmusem Project“ / October – December
Madrid, Spain, Galería Lucia Mendoza / Photoespaña / June – July
Madrid, Spain, Galería Lucia Mendoza / solo exhibition „Temples And Religion / September – November
Miami, Wanrooij Gallery / Scope / December
Amsterdam, Masters of LXRY / December

2015
Gstaad, Bel Air Fine Art / December – April
La Coruna, Atlantica Centro de Arte / solo exhibition / February – March
New York, Wanrooij Gallery / Art Miami / May
Geneva, Bel Air Fine Art /solo exhibition / June
Gstaad, Bel Air Fine Art / Hublot Polo Gold Cup / August
Beirut, Bel Air Fine Art / Beirut Art Fair / September
Madrid, Lucia Mendoza Gallery / Summa Contemporary / September
Amsterdam, Wanrooij Gallery / solo exhibition „Trust & Savings“ / October
San Francisco, Wanrooij Gallery / Art Silicon Valley / October
Amsterdam, Wanrooij Gallery / Masters of LXRY / December
Miami, Art Miami / UNIX Gallery / December

2016
New York, UNIX Gallery solo exhibition „Photography“ / January – March
Houston, UNIX Gallery solo exhibition „Photography“ / March – April
Madrid, Photoespaña & solo exhibition „Inner Landscape“ / June – August
Madrid, Lucia Mendoza Gallery / solo exhibition „Inner Landscape“ / June – August
Hamburg, Die Hamburger Gallery / solo exhibition „Inner Landscape“ / September – October
Köln, Die Hamburg Gallery / Art Cologne / October
Paris, Bel Air Fine Art / 8e Avenue Art Show / October
Amsterdam, Wannroij Gallery / Masters of LXRY / December
Miami, Unix / Art Miami / December

2017
Palm Beach, Unix Gallery / Palm Beach modern & Contemporary Art Fair / Januar
Miami, Bel Air Fine Art / groupshow / Jan – April
New York, aipad / April
Madrid, Spain, Galería Lucia Mendoza / solo exhibition „Live in motion“ part of Photoespaña / June – July

Book:

2015
Christian Voigt Photography, published by teNeues, www.teneues.com