Ja ja, ok (well, whatever)
Andre Germar exhibits his works at the Art Lounge by KWS

Deep blue image compositions are intended to transport visitors into the fascinating world of a historic, photographic noble printing process and inspire reflection. These are fences—or rather, sections of fences—presented in a very special way. Photographer and artist Andre Germar from Hanover is showcasing XX photograms, mostly as image series, as well as two large-format wall murals in classic photography, where the fence is visible only as a shadow. For Andre Germar, fences represent an expression of social limitation—symbols of a controlling order that he artistically questions to make spaces for openness and tolerance visible. “yeah yeah, ok” is the title of the exhibition, which can be seen until January 17 in the “Art Lounge by KWS” on Tiedexer Straße in Einbeck.

The title-giving installation “yeah yeah, ok” is a closed row of framed fence photograms running diagonally through the large lounge space. Visitors can step over it, but it initially makes everyone pause, making the other works in the back of the room seem less accessible and more distant. “In any case, the installation prompts engagement with limitation, with the fence—it makes you think about overcoming the barrier,” says Andre Germar. “Perhaps it feels liberating to cross the installation.”

Andre Germar uses the photogram technique to create so-called cyanotypes of fences. Also known as iron blue printing, it is an old photographic noble printing process characterized by blue tones. Germar prepares his own photo paper, transports it light-tight to the location, then exposes it to light and presses it against the fence to be depicted. Exposure time varies depending on sun position and cloud cover, but always lasts several minutes—allowing for a swift workflow that can still accommodate large-format papers for longer fence sections, as seen in one piece in the front room of the “Art Lounge by KWS.” After exposure, the artist rolls the papers back into light-tight tubes to fix the photograms in the darkroom with clear water. Unexposed areas remain water-soluble and can be rinsed out under running water. Through oxidation of the remaining substances, the cyanotype acquires its characteristic blue color.

Coming from documentary photography, Germar rarely works in the studio, even with photograms: in 2017, while working on a project about graffiti artists on railway grounds, he developed the idea of using the photogram technique on fences. He works with light and shadow to make their structures visible in an abstract, luminous blue form. Various types of fences—from chain-link to construction fencing to the security wire of a correctional facility—have become his subjects. In one case, a modern double-rod mesh fence is also recognizable. “My attitude toward fences has changed,” Germar describes his development over the past years. Fences are authoritarian, signaling that you cannot go further. But fences can also provide protection. It’s always a matter of perspective, says the artist.

The exhibition at the “Art Lounge by KWS” mainly features series of photograms; in some individual images, grasses or plants in front of the fence were also exposed. Other photograms deliberately break the rigidity of fences by bending or rounding the wire mesh.

Image credit Florian Spieker / Spieker Photography