When I first saw Gursky's "Rhein II" I was mesmerised. The 1,9 x 3,6 meter print was hanging high on a wall in the Istanbul Modern museum and it had a presence that gets lost on a screen. That feeling of awe has stuck with me ever since. Now I live minutes away from the Rhine and it has become a muse, not least due to the lasting impression of Gursky's masterpiece. During my walks I enjoy observing how the seasons, the time of day and the kind of light changes the mood of the river.
At a very sweet spot there is a poplar tree, which has become a subplot in all the photos I make of the Rhine. On this particular overcast day last January, the waters were high and the tree was half submerged. The sky had a delicate range of pastel blues, a kind of softness that always strikes a chord with me.
Only while writing this post and looking at Gursky's website did I realize that 19 years after "Rhein II" he made "Rhein III". Clearly, it's a river that lends itself to decades of exploration.
I like these Omar - maybe you could make formal portraits of the tree at all times of day and in different seasons - get your own tripod holes as it were!
ReplyDeleteThere's a lovely mistiness to the other side too and that industrial background looks immense - plenty of scope. I am looking forward to seeing more.
Hope everything is going well - any idea when you'll get your darkroom back?
Hi Phil. As you say, I've got a growing collection of photos of this tree. Let's see where it goes. What I also found interesting is, I've made small prints of the two pics here and side by side they almost look panoramic.
ReplyDeleteThe industrial complex in the second pic is the Henkel factory. And by the way, not very far from this spot, further south, is the Polaroid factory (in Monheim).
As for the darkroom, I have plans, but it'll have to wait for a while.
Thanks for popping in and leaving a comment, Phil. Appreciated, as always.
All the best!
Hi Omar - yeah I can see that - you could panorama-ise a whole series with the same tree in the middle - could look extremely weird! Sounds like a tripod job though.
DeleteGood luck with the darkroom!