Puppen

For Puppen, Carsten Höller’s 2013 collaboration with BORCH Editions, photographic images of empty pupae taken after the metamorphosis of insects were transferred into a suite of six black-and-white photogravures. The photographs were taken specifically for the purpose of the photogravure series, making it necessary to adjust the production process to the natural rhythm of the insects’ circle of life. The six images capture the moment after their metamorphosis, the magnified images emphasize the sculptural appeal of the cocoons and zoom in on the artefacts of the painful yet regenerative transformation process the insects experience.