Based on True Events

My work documents war reenactments in Europe to question our understanding of historical wars and to confront the viewer with the paradoxical aesthetics of war. It raises questions about how history is created and accessed, and what aspects of it may be forgotten or repressed. I visited reenactments of the Napoleonic Wars of Liberation, the American Civil War, and World War I and II, in Belgium, France and Germany. While some of these events are performed in front of an audience, others take place on private property and are closed off from the outside world. Often there are strict rules, military ranks and procedures that must be followed. Not only the clothing must be authentic, but also the food and shelter. Many of the reenactors have a strong knowledge of details. Their motivations vary enormously, from historical interest, trying to get close to the experiences of their grandfathers , weapons and war enthusiasm, collectors, to a glorified perception of war and camaraderie. With each of these reenactments, the true events behind them, are constantly reinterpreted and thus run the risk of being altered. Reenactments are always a kind of perfect warfare that cannot represent death, displacement and trauma.