Achim Mohné “Fireflies”

Shedhalle / Exhibitions / Lands End / Artists

Achim Mohné, Germany: “Fireflies”, C-Print Dia-Sec, 165 x 110 cm, 2000

Media artist Achim Mohné from Cologne often dedicates his work to phenomena that ephemeral that we perceive their presence only after their artistic enhancement. “Fireflies” consists of several photographs and video sequences and is based on an installation Mohné set up in different parts of southern California: a highly focused beam of light is projected into the vastness of a countryside and ends after approximately 30 meters in a matt black parabolic mirror. Dust from the desert, drops of rain or fog, pollen, or insects drawn by the light reflect the light in its corridor. The videos, in long takes, show the rhythmical movements of the objects. The photographs depict the moment of time frozen, the sequences of movements appear as tracks and traces. Getting close to mysticism, the aesthetics and the beauty of the pictures are created by a playful composition of light and time, of clip and limitation. At the same time, however, we are confronted with inconspicuous everyday perceptions, drops of water and dust, the smallest of insects, or seeds of plants.

“The Lemay Island Remote Location Project” (video documentation), 2005
There is a direct connection between “Fireflies” and the permanent “Land-Media-Sculpture”, an energy-autarchic light installation on Lemay Island Remote Location. This 40-acres large stretch of land was bought by Robert Smithson in 1969 and today is part of the Center for Land Use Interpretation in Los Angeles (www.clui.org). The countryside is characterised by dry, salt flats and by hilly, sparsely covered steppe. Mohné started to work on this project involving an autarchic light sculpture during a residency.

Photo: A. Mohné

The permanent installation on Lemay Island was switched on in June 2005, illuminating the surrounding countryside 24 hours, seven days a week, it is fed by a solar module and a wind generator. The LED-spot that was modified to withstand the extreme climactic conditions of the desert has been successfully operating now for more than 4 1/2 years. The light can be seen even by daylight in the narrowly conceived light corridor, during the night it can be seen even at a distance of 17 km, its brightness corresponding to that of a full moon.