(Peter H. Hergarten)
An artist is someone who simply can not do anything else but art. From narrative based fashion photography Peter H. Hergarten fully and compassionately moved to photography art about 3 years ago. His approach to photography art is mainly based on human emotions and of course faces, the most fascinating mirrors of our souls, earned by the way we live our lives. And since a human being can only co-exist, the second important aspect of Peters work would be his perspective and commentary on our society, always taken through the prism of fashion which makes our strengths and weaknesses oh so visible…Dressed or naked, a human being is the most beautyful when he accepts and embraces his own vulnerability and photogrpahy can not only document it, it memorializes it.
Peters’ inspiration:
Gerhard Richter for seting new benchmarks and allowing to question yourself again and again
Joseph Beys for being a very artistic philosoph
Francis Bacon for finding beauty in the agony
Albert Watson for his professional accuracy of work
Helmut Hewton for his consequent attempt to put women up on the platform and never regretting it
Albert Camus for writing „L’étranger“
Patrick Süsskind for being a silent innovator
Frank O.Gehry for being a late bloomer
Tadao Ando for his autodidactic sense for aesthetics
WORK
Club Privée
A cold, glamorous bunch presenting itself on a silver plate. We see no imperfections, no pores, no interaction. We see a somehow polished extract of our society, where everybody can be or desperately tries to be beautiful, but just for himself and for no one else. There is no sharing, no flirting, no attraction – just a bunch of narcissists, unable to give and receive love.
Morphotologics
Inspiration needs movement and movement is unable to be controlled. Morphotologics (named after Hergartens’ own developed photography method) shows a gallery of technically perfect photographs based on moments beyond directions. Only the actor in front of the camera can influence the result since the photographer has completely given up the control.
Face off
What happens if you try to extract a pure facial expression of anger, joy or sadness? This series of photographic work show raw human emotions transplanted on man-high mannequin dolls, emotions completely free from „distractions“ such as fashion, status or even hair. Inspired by gomi pictures and morphing programms used for psychological research on empathy, Peter Hergarten shooted men, women, actors, models, elder people for this impressive parade of bare feelings.
The Split Brain
A cinematical approach on the subject of identity The Split Brain is the result of Hergartens’ collaboration with performance artist Milo Moiré. What is the facade, the mask and what is the within? How are they connected and how do we access it, if we are able to. Try to come closer to the duality of our existence.