More works by Dirk Brömmel
Kopfüber
MIG
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BACKGROUND INFORMATION
ABOUT THE WORK
Kopfüber
Using digital techniques, Dirk Brömmel broadens the scope of our perceptions. Kopfüber (English: Headfirst) takes us to lofty heights, where the view seems much clearer. The ships Dirk Brömmel photographs from above are not the main focus, he explains. “For me, it’s about what is hidden on or behind them and making that visible.”
The photographer assembles his “reality” from many individual pictures, isolating the subject and placing it in front of a colourful background. By doing this, he creates a digital image that bends the rules of time and perspective, letting us discover more than would be possible with the naked eye. In Brömmel’s work, ships become models, studies.
MIG
The war is long-since over. Airplanes that once symbolised power have become rusty war monuments. Dirk Brömmel captures the diverse moods these symbols create. They speak of the failures of politics, the population’s hope for a better future, and of a past that won’t loosen its grip on the present.
When exhibited without the context of their surroundings, the aircraft seem like lost ideals. Bolted in place, the terror-inducing effect they had in the air seems almost forgotten. Dirk Brömmel’s pictures tell stories that remain in the collective memory.
To me, photography is the longing to hold something tight, to make thoughts tangible in the form of a picture.
Dirk Brömmel
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Born in 1968 in Bonn-Bad Godesberg, Germany, Dirk Brömmel grew up on the small island of Grafenwerth on the River Rhine. At age nine, the artist began to photograph his own microcosm. After finishing a photography apprenticeship in 1993, he found his own means of artistic expression while studying art in Mainz, where he discovered all the possibilities inherent in digital image editing.
In his photographs, Brömmel aims to retain “things in their disappearance” while making “the movement of time” visible. A recipient of multiple awards, the artist now lives and works in Wiesbaden, Germany.
TECHNIQUE
Kopfüber
For his Kopfüber series, Dirk Brömmel sets up on bridges spanning rivers. There, he points his lens straight down at the water. In a burst of as many as 60 individual pictures, he captures passing ships in their entirety. Using a computer, he then assembles the pieces into a single image. Finally, he crops out everything apart from the ship, replacing the water with a monochrome background. Exhibited in this way, the ship’s decks seem like detailed and razor-sharp showcases.
VITA
1968 Born in Bonn-Bad Godesberg, Germany 1990-1993 Education: Photographer, Bonn, Germany 1993-1994 College of Art, Bonn, Germany 1995 Excursions to America, Armenia, Bulgaria, China, Italy, France, Iceland, Thailand, Czech Republic, Turkey, Egypt, Morocco, Norway, South Africa 2001-2004 Studied Art at the Academy of Fine Arts at Johannes-Gutenberg University Mainz with a focus on photography. Degree: Diploma honored by Prof. Dr. Vladimir Spacek, Mainz Germany 2005 Student of the Master Class by Prof. Dr. Vladimir Spacek, Mainz, Germany 2006 Graduation at the Academy of Fine Arts at Johannes-Gutenberg University Mainz 2007 Lives and works in Wiesbaden, Germany
