Mastering the Elements
Jana Hartmann
The Eriskay Connection
English
Hardcover
Edition of 900
272 pages
230 x 312 mm
2022
ISBN 9789492051653
Mastering the Elements is a photographic research on the scientific exploration and conquest of nature from the beginnings of alchemy until the present day. As history shows, scientific findings often have profound implications for society and the lives of individuals. On the other hand, the underlying research is not per se unbiased, but subject to its respective social and historical environment as well as to varying commercial and political interests. Consequently, ethical questions not only around the direction and objectives of modern-day research, but furthermore about the boundaries for the deployment of scientific results should be part of a broader social discourse.
In her work Jana Hartmann addresses various topics that have captivated the curiosity of researchers throughout history and in which the borders of scientific understanding continue to be pushed ever further. Examples being the concept of matter which today is advanced by quantum physics or the pursuit of prolonging human life, reenergized by discoveries in the fields of biogerontology and transhumanism.
The artist took her selectively framed photographs from scientific experiments, natural history exhibits, studio models, and nature itself. By juxtaposing them with excerpts from alchemical writings, scientific papers, and ethical viewpoints, she initiates an intriguing interdisciplinary dialogue between multiple narrative perspectives – the visual artistic, the allegorical alchemistic, the philosophical and the scientific.
(source: https://www.thelibraryproject.ie/collections/tsundoku-art-book-fair-2023/products/mastering-the-elements-jana-hartmann)
About the Artist
Jana Hartmann, born in 1971, with her studio based in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, is a visual artist who focuses on exploring the multi-layered and ambivalent relationship between man and nature. While her main medium is photography, she frequently complements her artistic work by video, performance and sculpture. In her series, motifs ranging from landscapes, studio models to scientific experiments converge into multifarious narratives that she presents in installations as well as in book form. In following her conviction that our complex world can be best understood by an interdisciplinary approach, Jana Hartmann’s long-term projects are founded on multi-perspective research and a broad dialogue, i.g. with natural scientists, philosophers and historians.
janahartmann.eu
(source: https://www.janahartmann.eu/jana-hartmann/info/)
About the Publisher
The Eriskay Connection is a Dutch studio for book design and an independent publisher. They focus on contemporary storytelling at the intersection of photography, research and writing.
eriskayconnection.com
(source: https://www.eriskayconnection.com/content/4-about-us)
