The artwork « Father Island » is set on the German island Sylt. It’s mostly known for wealthy people having their villas or being on vacation. The artwork shows my perception on the island. It has nothing to do with the rich people but with the simplicity and self-evidency of the islanders. In between of the sea and the dunes of Sylt, a nude woman stands in the foreground having her towel only on her arms displaying her body to the man in the background smoking a cigarette behind a beach chair. Him looking in her direction doesn’t bother her and she walks away. This scene portrays a nude beach and shows the simple side of the island apart from all the glitz and glam. Whilst being completely nude, the woman has no feeling of shame but only that of confidence. Due to my father being part of the last generation being born on the island because of the closing of the maternity hospital and my grandfather living on the island while never having lived somewhere else, I am the first generation of my family that didn’t live on Sylt. I still have a sense of belonging to the island. I often visited my grandfather and quickly experienced a different side of the place than the usual visitor would get to see. Part of this experience were the beaches that I try to portray in my work. Apart from my own experiences I got influenced by Sven Simon. He was a photographer who got along well with my grandfather and fell in love with the place whilst seeing it as the place it is at its core and not the way it is portrayed. Now that my grandfather gets older I know that my intimate connection with the island and my families roots loosening themselves from the place might be limited. That’s why I try not to portray Sylt in the most perfect way, but in one that express my feelings towards it and the way I see it as nowadays.
