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Background information
The self-published artist book 'Nová Evropa' by Christian KASNERS deals with contemporary everyday life in the Czech Republic. "In a society that oscillates between the idea of a united Europe and anti-European right-wing populism. In the urban landscape and its furnishings, on political posters and billboards, in consumer articles and diverse uses of public space, the photographer searches for manifestations of ideological and political ideas. In the close interweaving of the observations, the question arises as to which indicators can be used to read the creeping transformation of a society. What is the relationship between political programs and everyday reality, and how the design of public space influences the reality of a population's life?
His images are echoed in a textual work that presents the European idea and its development since the 19th century. In combination with quotes from politicians, journalists and scientists, Christian KASNERS' photographic work becomes a visual study of the struggle for a European idea. Viewed the other way around, the theoretical concepts and visions are subjected to a reality check through the photographs.
Content
The motifs in the photo book 'Nová Evropa' by Christian KASNERS appear banal when viewed in isolation. Over the stringing together of the photographs in the artist's book, the observations are condensed. The images run beyond the margins of the pages, instead of being placed isolated with frames on the wall or on the page of the book with a lot of white space. This creates a linear flow of images that foregrounds the interlocking of everyday observations. What becomes visible is how historical legacies are overwritten by new forms of use, how the state of a society is inscribed in architectural as well as political gestures." (somewhat adapted text, © Christin Müller)