Amsdorf

This series of paintings, created in 2026 in the central German mining region, explores the concept of time in diverse and overlapping ways. Both paintings were created using pigments produced by the artist herself directly from the landscape – lignite from the Amsdorf opencast mine, as well as goethite and haematite, which are typically extracted from soils in mining-affected areas of Lusatia. The use of raw materials from a landscape that took millions of years to form is a commentary on geological time. However, as the landscape was created through human intervention and layers were exposed that would otherwise have remained hidden underground, the paintings are also a commentary on the Anthropocene, which is characterised by human interventions in the natural environment that shape and alter it. Finally, the depiction of a landscape adds a third temporal dimension: the time the artists spend in and with the landscape to produce and abstract the observed elements and transform them into an artistic, painterly composition. For the viewer, these three processes unfold in reverse order: At first, they notice the semi-abstract forms of the artwork and may reflect on the nature of the artistic creative process; on closer inspection, they may realise that the landscape depicted has been altered by humans, and finally they notice the earth materials, shaped by geological time, from which it was created. Two further paintings, entitled Leuna and Halle-Neustadt are currently at various stages of production and will be ready for exhibition by May 2026. One uses lignin to depict a chemical factory producing resins and adhesives derived from wood; the other is painted with watercolours derived from cement and depicts a prefabricated housing estate in Halle (Saale). All materials were produced in a geochemical facility and tested for hazardous substances.