I am a DESIGNER and PHOTOGRAPHER, born in Lauchhammer, Germany in 1976. From 1997 to 2001, I studied communication design at the Rhein Main University in Wiesbaden and from 2001 to 2004 visual communication at the Berlin University of the Arts.
Between 1999 and 2004, I was awarded numerous design and photo awards (OLYMPUS, POLAROID CREATIVE, GERMAN DESIGNER CLUB) and worked as a designer at various agencies (HEINE / LENZ / ZIZKA, TÖCHTER & SÖHNE, NOKIA) and in various educational institutions in Berlin, Weimar and Wiesbaden.
In 2006, I followed my heart to Bogotá and have been a Professor of Design and Photography at the UNIVERSIDAD DE LOS ANDES in the Department of Architecture and Design since 2007. My focus is on design basics, digital studio photography, experimental typography, public interventions, social design, information design and conceptual thinking. In my courses, I specifically mix disciplines and techniques in order to realize interesting design projects together with private companies, public institutions or foundations. In addition, I work with specialists from other areas as a consultant for private companies and public institutions.
My photographic works have been published in magazines such as COMPUTER FOTO, WÖRKSHOP, PHOTOGRAPHIE, PROFIFOTO, LA REVISTA and CROMOS. My work has been exhibited in Berlin, Hannover and Bogotá.
I have given lectures at the UNIVERSITÄT MOZARTEUM in Salzburg, at the WANNSEEFORUM Berlin, as well as in the context of the INTERNATIONAL MEDIENFESTIVALS in Manizales, at the UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL, at the UNIVERSIDAD LOS ANDES in Bogotá, Colombia and at the international design congress FORMA in Havana, Cuba.
Since 2012, I have headed the communications and publications department of the Faculty of Architecture and Design. With the aim of improving the acceptance and readability of academic publications, I designed more than 20 publications in the field of design research and teaching at the faculty. In 2017, I published an article in the magazine CONTRA-PORTADA on the subject of design and academic publications.
My artistic and research work emphasizes the importance of the small things in life. Through the use of various media such as photography, illustration and design, I elevate the unnoticed and overlooked aspects of everyday life to become the main actors in my work and accentuate unsightly things in their natural beauty. I integrate my research topics into my courses in order to enhance them, working together with students and other professors from various disciplines.
In 2016, I published my book “THE PARADOX OF UGLINESS” which is available on the uniandes library platform and various bookstores in Colombia.