For this project, acclaimed Belgian photographer Lieven Lefere (b. 1978) was invited to present his first solo exhibition in Germany. His work explores the complex relationship between light and shadow, between physical reality and the photographic image.

The creation of his works is marked by a remarkably slow and meticulously prepared process. Lefere carefully selects and manipulates every formal element of his compositions. He constructs the desired image first in his mind, then builds life-sized models, shapes the space, and finally determines how the light should fall on the scene. At crucial points, he deliberately allows elements to disappear into semi-darkness. Upon closer inspection, it becomes clear: it is the shadow, not the object, that takes centre stage in his work.

Lefere is a master of obscuration. Through his intentional reduction of light and the resulting emphasis on shadow, he challenges the viewer to embrace layered and personal interpretations of the unseen.

His practice enters into a fascinating dialogue with Jun’ichirō Tanizaki’s seminal essay In Praise of Shadows, in which the Japanese writer states:

“We believe that beauty is not in the thing itself but in the play of shadows, the light and the darkness, that one thing against another creates... Without shadows, there is no beauty.”

Whereas Western culture often associates shadow with ambiguity or suspicion, Lefère actively engages with that ambiguity. The exhibition offered a profound insight into the oeuvre of an artist who teaches us to perceive beauty in the hidden and the veiled.