With her new work Bliss, Laura J. Padgett turns to our complex and often erratic relationship with nature—one shaped by longing and control, intimacy and estrangement. Her photographs highlight how artificial evocations of the natural world can bring solace and reflect our own imperfections.

“These images are ideas of natural phenomena in their direct relation to humanity. They are faulty, but essentially precious.” Laura J. Padgett

A catalogue with an essay by David Matless will accompany the exhibition.

Laura J. Padgett (b. 1958 in Cambridge, USA) received her BFA in painting from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. She continued her studies in film and photography at the Städelschule from 1983 to1985 and received her MA in Art History and Aesthetics in 1994 from the Johann-Wolfgang-Goethe University, both in Frankfurt am Main.

Since the 1990s Laura J. Padgett has produced a complex body of work. She exhibits widely, while also participating in international film screenings.

In addition to her exhibiting activities, the artist regularly writes on film, art and aesthetic theory. Since 1990 she has taught and lectured at various universities in Germany and abroad.
Her work is held in various major public and private collections, including the German Historical Museum (DHM), Berlin, Städel Museum, Graphic Collection, Frankfurt am Main, Huis Marseille, Museum for Photography, Amsterdam, Jewish Museum, Frankfurt am Main, DZ BANK Art Foundation, Frankfurt am Main, Historical Museum Frankfurt am Main, Museum of Modern Art, Museion, Bozen, Sir John Soane's Museum, London, Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg, Schloss Wilhelmshöhe, Hessen Kassel Heritage, Deutsche Bank Collection, Land Rheinland Pfalz, Land Hessen, and City of Frankfurt.

Laura J. Padgett lives and works in Frankfurt am Main.