The photographs of Clara Bahlsen (b. 1978) take a both cautious and precise look at life in the countryside. Horses and cars – these are the means of transportation of greatly differing speed. While some ride through the village on horseback, others may already be on the next highway exit ramp, heading into the big city. How does it feel to return to the countryside? And how does it feel to stick around? Unobtrusively, Clara Bahlsen’s camera focuses on people and landscapes, moving close without exposing them. Her pictures do not feign unobserved naturalness, nor is photographic technology used for the purpose of staging to embellishing effect. The camera perceptibly remains an observer, while at the same time serving as a poetic recording device. Looking into the camera, their postures oscillating between insecurity and unselfconsciousness, the individuals depicted appear as if subject to a gentle interrogation. The landscape photographs, rather than staging images of wild, primitive nature, consistently depict cultivated land – fields, houses, roads. The presence of the photographic equipment makes itself felt here in an emphasis on the linear, an emphasis that is as casual as it is aesthetic. Clara Bahlsen’s country life is bathed in soft light that, never appearing glaring or glorifying, colours it in subtle hues of grey, brown and green. The exhibition Pferde und Autos is based on a photo book of the same title by the young artist, who has received numerous awards, including the 2011 IBB Award for Photography.
