Tweet, tweet, tweet. Hear that? We don’t mean Twitter… Take a look outside and marvel at the birds, or better yet head down to Sprüth Magers in Mitte for Jean-Luc Mylayne’s larger than life photographs and spend some time with his number one focal point: birds. The French artist has been photographing birds in the wild for over 35 years. His extreme focus draws you into the gallery and out into nature. But as we see glimpses of Mylayne’s journey, do we not embark on our own?

You don’t have to be an avid bird watcher to see the artistry in Jean-Luc Mylayne’s photographs.  They surround you in the space like windows of frozen time.  Look right and a black bird with piercing red eyes stares at you sideways. Look left and a bird on a branch is soaked in shadow, hiding in plain sight. The birds are always present in Mylayne’s photographs, even if all we can see of them is a blurred wing as one tries to escape the frame.

Is It Only About Birds?

But it is not just about the birds.  The spaces they inhabit range from abstracted background to the American Southwest.  Images of dusty hot days spent passing time with no clock watching make the space feel slow and extra urban.  One imagines sitting in a rocking chair sipping lemonade and seeing the day go by.  There is no Twin Peaks -the owls have eyes – feeling in this space.  It’s an inviting natural retreat and conveniently you don’t need to leave the city for this weekend in the country.

So if you fancy a little time to yourself, the birds will be there right through the summer, stuck in time, waiting for you.  But move quickly because come the end of August they’ll have to fly south.

•  Sprüth Magers Jean-Luc Mylayne. June 6th – August 25th, 2012, Tuesday-Saturday: 11am-6pm.

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Painting by Catrin Walz Stein

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