1989 – Steel sculpture ‘Hafen 77’ by Felix Fehlmann in Kiel, Germany. Photo © Mark Zanzig/zanzig.com
The story behind the image
Art or Trash?
It happened a while ago. The friend from the south wanted to see the water where we nordic folks live. Said and done. Shortly after the guest from Bavaria had uttered his wish, we drove along the Hindenburgufer. We admired the seaside and I smartly downplayed certain issues with the water quality.
But then came the question that every visitor of Kiel asks at some point in time: “What is this rusty thing over there?” I knew it was coming, so I glanced at the water and asked hypocritically: “What do you mean?” – “Over there, on the other side!” The visitor pointed to the orphaned monument on the other side of the street. I said: “Uh. That, er, is an expression of our maritime culture and proof for the fact that art is perfectly possbile near the water. The monument is adequately greets seamen from far away countries. A rusty body of a ship is a good match, isn’t it?”
The Bavarian guest fell into a reverent silence. My explanation seemed to be credible and I started to rave now. “Haven’t you noticed its majestic form? And the beautiful material? Iron plats, tanned by wind and weather and held together by ship tows. That’s unique for Kiel.”
Meanwhile, the visitor from Bavaria had found another admirable object: the Gorch Fock, the prominent German tall ship based in Kiel. And while we were there, at the Blücherbrücke, we quickly visited the seals. But what was that? Framed rocks? These must have been new. “So, is this also an expression of your maritime culture”, mocked my guest. Oh my. I needed an explanation, and quickly…
I said: “Well, take a different viewpoint,” and tried to win some time. “Imagine, the triangles are sails of surfboards. And the rocks are people. And when such a heavy guys surf, they will drown. Don’t you see the maritime protest against our affluent society?” Now the ball was in my friend’s court. “Well, you could be right,” he finally admitted.
To be continued
The high resolution image
| Capture Date | Spring 1989 |
| Location | Kiel, Germany |
| Camera | Canon AE-1 Program |
| Image Source | Ilford FP-4 Negative Film |
| Digital Image Source | EPSON Perfection 4870 Photo |
| Digital Image Source Format | TIFF, 48 bits/pixel, sRGB |
| Edited Image Format | JPEG, 24 bits/pixel, sRGB |
| Edited Image Dimensions | 6555 x 4370 Pixels |
| Copyright | © by Mark Zanzig/zanzig.com |
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