The photographs that Sebastian Stadler applied to the walls of two stairwells, using a screen printing process, in the new operations building for the security association for the Wil region (SVrW), bear witness to tragedies both large and small. What at first glance looks like friends on a walk through the forest turns out to be the rescue of an injured parachutist, but whether or not the cat on the roof is the subject matter or simply a spectator of the whole affair is not entirely clear.
Columns of smoke and jets of water spewing out from manhole covers transform into moments of abstract beauty within the picture, while people in protective gear are kept busy attempting to resolve tangible problems. as for the texts that go with each picture, these complement the scene using dry reporting language. ‘Pfannenbrand’ (pan fire), ‘Wohnung entlüften’ (airing out the flat) – events are described briefly, some of which are partly obvious but often don’t provide information on which emergency is behind the official language. The photographs and their titles were chosen by Stadler from the archive of Wil’s fire department, civil protection and emergency services. a coherent visual language is typical for this seris of documentary photographes, even if it is recorded by different people. This is thanks to Stadler’s work on the pictures. With an eye for compelling detail, the artist selected image sections and imprinted his own view on to the archive material. ‘Scheune fing Feuer’ (barn caught fire) results in an impressive piece of work that focuses on genuine photographic themes – it raises inevitable questions as to the evidentiary strength of photographs and the function of an archive. (Text: Sarah Wiesendanger)
Scheune fing Feuer, 2017
Kunst am Bau, Sicherheitsverbund Wil