Elger Esser

The exhibition “Nachsommer”* is Elger Esser’s sixth solo exhibition at Galerie Rüdiger Schöttle. As often the case with this photographer known for his atmospheric landscapes, the title alludes to a 19th-century literature standard. Here, the title comes from Nachsommer by Adalbert Stifter (1857), which focuses on the perception of art. At the same time, the title conveys the clear mood of late summer and early fall vegetation and light in Central Europe, where the exhibition works were created. In the thirteen or so photographic works taken in various French coastal regions and river basins, time stands perceptibly still. Land, water and sky harmoniously and devotedly meet in these images.
In recent years, Elger Esser has developed a photographic printing technique for the analogue photographs of such painterly places. This technique is reminiscent of early 19th-century photographs yet is very contemporary, given the machine pigment printing process on a silver-plated copper surface.

Elger Esser (born 1967 in Stuttgart) grew up in Rome. He returned to Germany to study in Bernd and Hilla Becher’s famous class at the Düsseldorf Art Academy (1991-1997), where he still lives and works today. He belongs to the second generation of the so-called Düsseldorf Becher School. His works have long been in renowned international collections, including the Center Georges Pompidou Paris, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, Museo Jumex in Mexico City and Lenbachhaus Munich. The Haus Beda of the Neue Galerie in Bitburg is currently organizing his solo exhibition. His photographs from Mont-Saint-Michel were displayed at L’Abbaye de Mont-Saint-Michel in the first half of 2024.
Elger Esser, Ètang de Peyriac, 2024, Mixed Media: silver-plated copper plate, directprint, shellac, 47 × 62 × 5 cm, Edition of 3 + 1 AP
© Elger Esser / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn, 2024