The Shape of F. S.

The Shape of F. S. is a personal exploration of my great-grandfather‘s history as a soldier in the First World War. With my mother, I travel along the former Western Front, trying to understand how his war experiences have influenced our family history.

The Shape of F. S. is a personal exploration of my great-grandfather‘s history as a soldier in the First World War. Initially alone, and later accompanied by my mother, I travel along the former Western Front to understand how his war experiences have influenced our family history.

Field post letters from my great-grandfather provide clues about the places, times, and his emotional state. I use these historical fragments to reinterpret and continue the story 110 years later. This work is an interwoven narrative between myself, my mother and my great-grandfather himself.

This constellation creates a dialogue between past and present, where uncertainty and the search for answers are constant companions.
The visual narrative of this project incorporates traditional documentary photographs of the contemporary landscape as one layer. This is complemented by various elements, including still lifes of found objects, interpretation of old photos, and subjective moments experienced during my journey with my mother.
The focus is on an emotional approach to the emptiness and the unanswered questions. The aim of the work is an emotional examination of historical wars and their culture of remembrance, while leaving room for speculation.