MICHAEL DANNER
Critical Mass / Kritische Masse
My work Critical Mass/Kritische Masse - Nuclear Power in Germany documents the architecture, everyday routine, and security systems of all 17 German nuclear power plants, as well as the radioactive waste repository Asse II and the Gorleben exploratory mine.
High hopes and deep skepticism have accompanied the use of nuclear power up to the present day. In the euphoric mood that prevailed in the 1950s, everything seemed possible; people took part in an unprecedented economic upswing and found in nuclear energy a fascinating technology for the future. But the optimism of the boom years gave way in the 1980s to a skepticism that was further fueled by the catastrophic nuclear accident in Chernobyl. Anti-nuclear activism has now shaped the political consciousness of a whole generation. And the disaster in Fukushima in 2011 heralded yet a new era in the debate – it seems that a nuclear phase-out in the medium-term is now inevitable. The issue of the final disposal of radioactive waste is still unresolved, however.
My work gives us a rare glimpse behind the scenes at the power plants, showing areas that are normally off-limits. My photographs are interlocked with historical photographs from police and state archives from the planning and construction phases of the plants. Essays by Susanne Holschbach and Kai F. Hünemörder reflect the projectand -SYB- has designed the book.
Biography
Born in Reutlingen (Germany) in 1967, I now live in Berlin. I studied photography at the Fachhochschule Bielefeld (D) and the University of Brighton (UK) and subsequently lived in London from 1997 to 2000. My artistic and photographic work focuses on the life-world. Here, I develop visual strategies that serve as a means of stepping back from the scene at hand, thus allowing for observation, interpretation and staging. The distance thus achieved creates space for various levels of meaning, such as social and historical references or medial reflections. My aim is to facilitate a dialogue between image and recipient that reaches beyond the subject itself and links with the observer’s life-world.