Smoke + Mirrors

The video work ‘Smoke + Mirrors’ by Clemens Wittkowski explores the theme of our transience. Deep within the soul lie the hidden and the unfathomable, and both instinctively resist the inevitable – the fact that one day we will no longer be. Like breathing, the constant alternation between inhaling and exhaling is also a psychological shift. What do we breathe in, and what do we breathe out? What do we hold onto within ourselves? And what can we allow to escape from our bodies and souls? Distinguishing between good and bad substances is not easy. Our breathing reflects our individual reality. Things continue well when we exhale deeply, when toxic smoke dissipates, when dangerous background noises fade away, when resonances vibrate harmoniously, when raging storms and wanton confusion clear up, when lifelines are revealed and seek to reconnect with others. To grow together.

Video, 02:13 min., by Clemens Wittkowski, with Bastian Schau, Mirko Michalzik, Sebastian Morsch, Claus Friede*Contemporary Arts, 2026.