VERSTEINERT is the third series in my photo book project SAGEN. Here, the rendering of fossilization and distortion of memory relies not so much on the use of photographic film, but on the manipulation of digital photographs via Photoshop. The main subject is absent of these portraits, the faces, are missing. Despite the absence, they remain the focal point of the image. With this series I aimed to create an intensely fictional world reminiscent of old, damaged photos discovered after centuries, while also hinting at contemporary digital processing techniques. What results is a fossilized, claustrophobic world, from which the subjects, despite the absence of their facial features, seems to stare directly at the viewer. The friends I once knew are thrown into this ancient, alienating world, like a dying memory numbly rehearsing the ancient ways in a blur of forgetfulness.
