Karin Schmuck

Karin Schmuck – INFINITY

INFINITY, the title of the solo exhibition, can be seen as the first retrospective of the comprehensive oeuvre of the young artist Karin Schmuck. The last 8 years of her work are illuminated with selected works from various series and media.

Seascapes, horizons, as well as mountain worlds – borders of our current as well as mythological borders are the central theme of Schmuck’s works. Human and metaphysical transitional areas can be discovered. The separating as well as the connecting element (“con-fine” contains the word end but also the word with(each other) of the theme border, interest the artist.

Ambiguity is a recurring element in Schmuck’s work and also stands for the medium of photography itself. The photographer’s point of view and that of the viewer jointly define the work and leave room for the “in-between”, the edges, the periphery.
Schmuck is interested in untouched nature, in “non” places that are given little importance.
The artist loves the challenge of exposing and capturing areas that are rarely visited. She explores the natural phenomena and myths of these places. She tries to juxtapose the past with current social and political events of our time and to show connections.

The flowing transitions in nature are juxtaposed with the physical boundaries of the work. The artist loves this tension. In her projects, the artist attempts to combine Greco-Roman mythology, as the cradle of our culture, with her personal experiences, such as the exploration of a territory and current local events. In doing so, she usually refrains from depicting people or man-made objects in order to provide a more distant perspective and also to draw attention to the transience of human beings.

In the last 4 years, the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic was decisive, the artist has hiked the borders of South Tyrol and created the series LIMITIS.
Somewhat before that, Schmuck began the WORLD`S ENDS series (2019). The Strait of Gibraltar, where the artist walked the approximately 70 km long coastal strip on the Spanish and Moroccan side, was the first location of WORLD`S ENDS.

The ascent of the Rock of Gibraltar and Jebel Musa in ancient Greece marked the western end of the known world, today a crossing point for refugees from south to north. Schmuck specifically focuses on the axial shift: East|West – South|North.
The examination of the theme of overcoming physical and mental borders and the departure into the unknown are shown.
Literature from Se questo è un uomo by Primo Levi and Divina Commedia, 26th Canto, Hell, Dante Alighieri have accompanied the artist on her solo journey.

Schmuck’s artistic approach encompasses years of exploring various themes and projects, prioritizing physical engagement and the performative act of walking. The artist uses her body as a real “recording device”, physically turning 180 degrees when necessary to take photographs. This happens especially in the case of LIMITIS and WORLD`S ENDS.
The body is a tool that enables the artist to intensify the gaze. Consequently, the gaze is not limited to seeing, but includes the entire physical dimension. Giving space to complexity, SEEING and WALKING as an act of cognition are central themes.

Studies of numerous historical and mythological writings and research for all her projects as well as the writings of the art historian John Berger on seeing are decisive for Karin Schmuck’s work. Her works can be defined as photography in the field of tension between reality and fiction.

The examination of the way images are read takes up classical elements and reverses them in order to trigger a kind of irritation in the viewer and stimulate the act of seeing and reflection.

Schmuck likes to work with inversions, she tries to capture contrasts in one and the same image.

This space is dedicated to showcasing contemporary artistic perspectives, offering both local and international artists the opportunity to exhibit their work through a hybrid format: an online virtual gallery alongside a physical exhibition space located within Aurora.