up-close dining

Exhibited at multiple exhibitions/events – (mirrored projection with sound installation)
In collaboration with Thomas Silberhorn

2024
Domagk Atelier open studio weekend, Munich, Germany

2019
14 Neue Ideen für ein erfolgreiches Kempten/Thomas Silberhorn, artig.st Kunstreich Gallery, Kempten, Germany
if i were you what would you do, Galerie___21 Vorwerk-Stift, Hamburg, Germany

“Up-Close Dining” is an interactive art piece that transforms the viewer into an active participant in a projected scenario. The mirrored image is sourced from a stock photo taken at SeaWorld in Orlando, USA—a marine park that offers visitors the opportunity to “dine” while watching captive Orca whales swim and perform with trainers in a tank.

“Dive into Orlando’s most immersive and memorable family dining experience. Following your meal, you’ll get an up-close view of our four rescued whales and the relationship between them and our SeaWorld trainers.”

This outdated and troubling attraction glorifies humanity’s ability to confine large wild animals for entertainment. No captive animal, even those labeled as “rescued,” should be trained and made to perform for human amusement. What kind of spectacle have we created?

In the wild, male Orcas can live up to 60 years, while females often reach 50—and some exceed 90 years. In captivity, however, Orcas rarely live beyond 20 years.

Accompanied by the original soundtrack played during the dining experience, this art piece immerses the viewer in the unsettling reality of this practice, prompting reflection on the ethics of captivity and the consequences of human self-interest.

 

Hamburg, 2019

Munich, 2024