KRISTIAN SCHULLER – BOTTLE III, 2008
In collaboration with JAEGER ART, Kunstraum Potsdam presents the exhibition Pictures by the renowned fashion and portrait photographer Kristian Schuller. With his unmistakable visual language, this solo show invites visitors to journey between worlds and times, between the present and the past.
Visitors can expect a fascinating journey through Schuller's energy-charged dream worlds. His works appear both in powerful colors and intense black-and-white tones. Sometimes they take the form of striking star portraits of personalities like Katy Perry or Cate Blanchett; other times, they unfold as atmospheric fashion compositions.
Born in Romania, the artist moved to Germany as a child. As a counterpoint, he presents a series of black-and-white portraits from Transylvania—diverse characters who shaped his image of home from a young age. These intense faces greet the viewer with an open gaze, creating a direct visual dialogue that complements the color-saturated dreamscapes. Both worlds of Kristian Schuller spark curiosity about the stories behind the images, the anecdotes behind the encounters, and the next stage of his poetic, breathless, and light-filled journey.
Schuller’s distinctive visual language, always created in close collaboration with his wife Peggy, is characterized by a playful and surprising use of the diverse possibilities of photography. His deliberate use of blur, combined with a harmonious interplay of light and shadow, gives his images a mystical atmosphere, allowing plenty of space for personal interpretation.
Regarding his approach to photography, Schuller says: "I would rather dream my way into the unknown than have everything presented to me in bright light. The silhouette of a woman is enough to let an entire film play out in my imagination. I am incredibly fortunate to work with wonderful people whose strong personalities both inspire and challenge me. It doesn’t matter whether they are well-known figures like Cate Blanchett or Penélope Cruz, or ordinary people from my village in the Transylvania series. Character and beauty in images can only emerge through the interaction with the subject’s personality. Everything else is empty to me.“
