Daniel Stier’s curious outsiders view into the world of science is a perfect find for DOP, because the series deals with perception on different levels: How we look at science and the ways in which scientists try to make sense of the world.
Looking at the pictures, all deliberately without titles, I can feel the curiosity that spurs their experiments, the open-ended search for understanding. It leaves me hopeful that science conducted in this spirit of enquiry still holds great promise for humankind. If we don’t constrict it by assumptions that harden into dogmas, it can be the method to enlighten our human condition. Otherwise it becomes a belief-system, limiting as any other.
The pictures below only show the first part of the project. The two-volume book further features still-life shots done in the studio. By staging fantasy experiments and playing with the aesthetics of evidential, scientific photography the artist shows the parallels between the two practices, science and art.
A personal project exploring the real world of scientific research. Not the stainless steel surfaces bathed in purple light, but real people in their basements working on selfbuilt contraptions. All shot in state of the art research institutions across Europe and the US, showing experiments with human subjects. Portrayed are the people conducting the experiments – students, doctorands and professors.
Statement by the artist