I discovered the work of the photographer Thomas Wrede whilst considering the sublime and the use or not of a horizon – perhaps the omission of a horizon could cause a disorienting effect? I came across a good example of this in the photograph House in the Mountains (2007) by Thomas Wrede. At first the photograph seems hilarious and absurd being devised using rocks and a small model house and yet it looks like a mountain landscape too! And then I started to think that this is analagous to how we live anyway, obliviously on the edge, unaware of danger as we systematically waste the planet. So it is not absurd. Even locally, there are houses falling of cliffs in East anglia.The absence of a horizon in this photo causes a destabilizing effect allowing the illusion – where is this strange place?
I looked at some other examples of Wrede’s work showing absurd human scenarios – remote, rugged landscape, danger and holiday travel. These works are sublime using absurdity and destabilisation. They show the vast, impersonal planet juxtaposed with the small absurdities of human existence and the transity of life on earth.
Thomas Wrede’s photography can be viewed at: http://www.thomas-wrede.de/
