Photo © Patrick Wassmann
Talent of the Year 2020 - NOMINEE: Patrick Wassmann
The Breath Against your Ear
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“Terror, when you come home and notice everything you own had been taken away and replaced by an exact substitute. It's when the lights go out and you feel something behind you, you hear it, you feel its breath against your ear, but when you turn around, there's nothing there...”
Stephen King
The Breath Against your Ear is a project contemplating the concept of Reality within the illustrious space of The Home.
The Home is a place we all know, one where we feel safe and comfortable. However, as Mr. King so accurately recognises, safety and comfort quickly become fear when something we know so well is just a little bit “off”. This phenomenon is called The Uncanny. Sigmund Freud was the first to theorise it in his paper, Das Unheimliche (Uncanny/ Un-homely). Freud explains:
“The Uncanny is that class of the Terrifying which leads back to something long known to us, once very familiar.”
The Uncanny or the un-homeliness of the home is very much present throughout this project, be it through the unnatural performance of the residents, the harsh lighting or the fact that something natural like a flower only seems to exist in plastic or printed on fabrics. These elements combined give us an eerie sensation and make us want to find out what is wrong, thereby questioning the reality presented to us.
The lines between reality and fantasy are blurred. The work confuses and disorientates the viewer, illustrating the intricate nature of reality as an abstract concept. The viewer is invited to question the assumed truth of the photograph and consider alternative ways in which images might speak and represent reality.
All the pictures are taken in the showrooms of IKEA, which in themselves are a metaphor for reality. This makes them a powerful stage to unravel deep-rooted questions about Reality. Through images of homes and images of representations of a home, the viewer is invited “on stage” to engage in philosophical questions about Reality and what reality is. Not to question a certain story or a certain reality, but to always be aware that there is more to the subject than what is right in front of their eyes.
About author:
Patrick is a documentary photographer currently living in Cardiff, Wales. He graduated from Fatamorgana Danish School of Art and Photography in 2014 and in 2019 he finished his BA in Documentary Photography from University of South Wales.
Born in the suburbs of Copenhagen in 1988, Patrick struggled with OCD in his early years which has instilled a great level of self-awareness, responsiveness to his surroundings and sharp attention to details and patterns. This has had a strong influence on his artistic point of view. His images are inquisitive and mostly human-centric, either dealing with relatable universal emotions, or deep existential questions.
Patrick has photographed in Denmark, Ukraine, Russia, the UK, Romania, and Poland. He has a strong interest in people from many different walks of life and is always up for a chat.
.
Stephen King
The Breath Against your Ear is a project contemplating the concept of Reality within the illustrious space of The Home.
The Home is a place we all know, one where we feel safe and comfortable. However, as Mr. King so accurately recognises, safety and comfort quickly become fear when something we know so well is just a little bit “off”. This phenomenon is called The Uncanny. Sigmund Freud was the first to theorise it in his paper, Das Unheimliche (Uncanny/ Un-homely). Freud explains:
“The Uncanny is that class of the Terrifying which leads back to something long known to us, once very familiar.”
The Uncanny or the un-homeliness of the home is very much present throughout this project, be it through the unnatural performance of the residents, the harsh lighting or the fact that something natural like a flower only seems to exist in plastic or printed on fabrics. These elements combined give us an eerie sensation and make us want to find out what is wrong, thereby questioning the reality presented to us.
The lines between reality and fantasy are blurred. The work confuses and disorientates the viewer, illustrating the intricate nature of reality as an abstract concept. The viewer is invited to question the assumed truth of the photograph and consider alternative ways in which images might speak and represent reality.
All the pictures are taken in the showrooms of IKEA, which in themselves are a metaphor for reality. This makes them a powerful stage to unravel deep-rooted questions about Reality. Through images of homes and images of representations of a home, the viewer is invited “on stage” to engage in philosophical questions about Reality and what reality is. Not to question a certain story or a certain reality, but to always be aware that there is more to the subject than what is right in front of their eyes.
About author:
Patrick is a documentary photographer currently living in Cardiff, Wales. He graduated from Fatamorgana Danish School of Art and Photography in 2014 and in 2019 he finished his BA in Documentary Photography from University of South Wales.
Born in the suburbs of Copenhagen in 1988, Patrick struggled with OCD in his early years which has instilled a great level of self-awareness, responsiveness to his surroundings and sharp attention to details and patterns. This has had a strong influence on his artistic point of view. His images are inquisitive and mostly human-centric, either dealing with relatable universal emotions, or deep existential questions.
Patrick has photographed in Denmark, Ukraine, Russia, the UK, Romania, and Poland. He has a strong interest in people from many different walks of life and is always up for a chat.
.