Kristin Schnell ‘Of Cages and Feathers’ - an ode to freedom and the natural world in a captivating symbiosis of color, form and bird
Photographer Kristin Schnell moved from the bustling city of Berlin to the countryside in northern Germany, where she lives in a remote house with a large garden surrounded by nature. The dramatic extent to which bird populations are declining due to industrial agriculture became a daily reality for Kristin Schnell. She began to engage intensively with the issue and processed her impressions by setting up a photography studio in her aviary and capturing the interplay of colors, forms, sunlight, wind and bird movements in their artificial habitat. The idea for the impressive and profound photo book ‘Of Cages and Feathers’ was born.
Appearing now as a photo book at Kehrer Publishing is the photography project by Kristin Schnell. She photographed birds in captivity as a symbol of the cage that humans tend to put themselves in. Her photos have been widely published and exhibited internationally. Themes explored in ‘Of Cages and Feathers’ include freedom, isolation and the relationship between humans and animals.
For the titles of her images, Kristin Schnell chose song titles from jazz legend Charlie Parker. The result is a set of vibrant and form-rich images that also reflect the social structure of the birds, in which the photographer sees parallels with humans.
Birds are a symbol of freedom but often kept in captivity. Living behind bars, they only have the chance usually to catch but a glimpse of the outside world. Reflections in the window panes mimic the sun, serving as a substitute. A symbol for Kristin that even in the darkest of times, there is always a ray of hope to hold on to.
“In my garden, I have a large outdoor aviary for mistreated birds. There, these birds have the opportunity to live a somewhat natural life, despite being behind bars. They can socialize with other partners and fly long distances. Through observation, I’ve learned a lot about them and noticed many parallels to us humans. The vibrant array of colors in my garden inspires me to envision an abstract and artificial world of birds behind bars.” Kristin Schnell.
“In first looking at Kristin Schnell’s stunning ode to the natural world, told through color, form, and bird, it took me a minute to understand the process of creating art in collaboration with a living creature. Inspired by the beauty of stained glass she experienced as a child in church windows, she developed a sensitivity to the movement of the sun, the changing color casts, and ideas of chance and spirituality. Her work is, in fact, an altar of sorts, devoted to the beauty and fragility of the avian world, accompanied by colorful sets that she builds and paints herself.” Aline Smithson.
Kristin Schnell - Of Cages and Feathers
Kehrer Publishing, texts by Hans Pfeifer
Design by Jana Neff, Juno Hamburg
Hardcover, 24 × 32 cm, 128 pages, 71 color illustrations
ISBN 978-3-96900-180-6, € 48.00
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