He is a photo painter in the best, traditional sense: in his photo paintings Jakob Kupfer creates compact works of art out of diffuse colour and light reflections. Kupfer does not merely depict things; rather, he lets the light itself live out its creative streak.

Jakob Kupfer’s photo paintings (Lichtbilder), as snapshots of the ever-changing light flux, render visible fantasy worlds painted from light. Kupfer sees these works – although created in a photographic manner – as paintings; unique works of pigment and wax on paper.

With the FADES, Jakob Kupfer goes one step further into questioning our vision. The digital originals transcend the frozen moments of the photo paintings into another, parallel time. Kupfer’s FADES are constantly transforming yet so subtly, that they remove any safe ground of vision: The one clear and constant work, being the classic motion picture. The FADES trickle through our view like sand between our fingers. They are as surprising as they are amazing. These are images, whose transformation you are determined to uncover. Yet they celebrate this change with such pleasure that it is impossible to capture it.

»Whatever we are unable to detect is something that we are allowed to conceive anew. Wherever we no longer have to understand is the point where freedom of imagination starts.« (Jakob Kupfer)

Artist portrait Jakob Kupfer