Objects in the Mirror

The exhibition ‘Objects in the Mirror’ combines photographs by Alwin Lay and painterly works by Markus Saile in an exciting presentation. It thematises the fragile and subtle dimension of temporality and evokes the feeling of a frozen moment that seems to have already passed and yet remains tangibly present. As the titular reference ‘Objects in the mirror are closer than they appear’ from US rear-view mirrors reminds us, it is precisely what is supposedly far away that is often surprisingly close - a metaphor for communication via perception, memory and reflection.

Lay and Saile open up a common intellectual terrain with their different techniques and their own artistic language. While Lay works with photographs that precisely capture and at the same time scrutinise snapshots, Saile's paintings operate on the border between abstract intuition and concrete memory. This artistic juxtaposition raises complex questions about the authenticity of perceptions and their subjective processing. By deliberately drawing parallels between the two artistic positions, the exhibition challenges viewers to critically reflect on their own seeing and experiencing. In this way, ‘Objects in the Mirror’ is not just a juxtaposition of artistic positions, but an intensive discourse on mechanisms of perception, views of reality and the fleeting nature of the familiar.