Hubertus Hamm – Narziss und Goldgrund

The work of Hubertus Hamm is characterized by its intense exploration of the medium of portrait photography, culminating in the installation Portrait IV, which the art historian Thomas Zaunschirm describes as follows:

Portrait IV (2016) is an epochal work by photographer and artist Hubertus Hamm, comprised of a wooden stele and the first golden mirror in the history of art. On the one hand, the minimalistic, simple-seeming piece is the culmination of Hamm’s life work and his aspiration to expand the limits of photography. On the other hand, this installation, with its 18-kg plate of 24-carat gold, presupposes an understanding of the history of seeing (consciousness), perspective (space), the mirror, the portrait, gold, and its (monetary) value.

In the vein of Renaissance thinker Leon Battista Alberti (1435), the title Narziss und Goldgrund (Narcissus and Gold Ground) refers both to Narcissus—as reflection as the origin of art—and to the end of the medieval gold ground. Seeing and gold exist in a dialectical relationship that begins in ancient Egypt, undergoes transformations in the Renaissance, Baroque, and Romantic periods, and finds its conclusion in the present day.

The installation Portrait IV separates the viewer from the surrounding space by means of a wooden stele, provoking a confrontation with one’s own (literally) gilded reflection, a dialogue with the manifold myths and meanings of gold—a material that is both transcendent and deeply worldly—and finally a reflection on the value of one’s own self.

Showcasing a selection of works, the exhibition traces the path that led Hubertus Hamm to this singular installation.

The works from the series Portrait I, exhibited with great success at the Villa Stuck in Munich and the Deichtorhallen in Hamburg, combine Hamm’s portrait photographs with manual interventions by the portrayed subjects themselves. Portrait II employs classic double exposure, merging the individual and unalterable pattern of a fingerprint with a photographic portrait of the same person to create a new image.

With Portrait III, Hubertus Hamm pushes the parameters of portrait photography further toward objectivity. Using a white box that isolates the sitter from the surrounding world, he subjects them to a mechanized photographic process: two flashes positioned at 45-degree angles illuminate the box, producing the same neutral lighting used in repro-photography for objects. Invisible to the sitter, Hamm releases the shutter at regular intervals, resulting in images created without the conscious intervention of the photographer.

In the series Diamonds (Portrait V), the photographic image is fragmented into countless kaleidoscopic impressions by small crystals. The glittering surface contrasts with the subject matter: elderly individuals whose physiognomies bear the visible marks of life. Their creased skin reflects the finitude of existence and raises questions about the value accorded to age in contemporary society.

In contrast, a photograph of a Buddha presents a portrait of the divine itself. Yet manual intervention disrupts the image, echoing the erosion of the gold surface of an ancient statue originally intended to last for eternity. Time visibly inscribes itself into both the motif and the photographic surface.

The exhibition concludes with an installation centered on the smartphone, the mirror of our time. As our umbilical cord to the world—and through its selfie function—a reflection of our self-image, the properly lit black display of a smartphone resembles a dark mirror even when switched off. Hubertus Hamm’s installation plays with this observation.

As a consistent expansion of the principle of photography—termed by the artist “Dimensioning Photography”—Hamm’s works engage viewers in dialogue, encouraging self-reflection and questioning of one’s own position. His works have been exhibited in major institutions including the Villa Stuck (Munich), the Deichtorhallen (Hamburg), the Neue Sammlung at the Pinakothek der Moderne (Munich), and the Yuan Art Museum (Beijing). Temporary installations have also been shown at the National Theatre Munich, the Allianz Arena, and the acatech – German Academy of Science and Engineering.

The events described above will be held on three separate dates. The resulting portraits—unique works in a format of 40 × 30 cm and signed by the artist—may be purchased.