‚aye‘ tells a story of a fictitious growing up in Scotland. I use this city as a stage to tell my own ‚German‘ history.
The inspiration was based on a feeling while passing through the city of Glasgow in 2019. Memories and pictures were appearing from 40 years ago of my hometown in Germany.
My own past lay in front of me, one that I had never documented. ‘aye‘ tells of personal encounters with people living in Glasgow. By experiencing stories with them, I recognise my own socialisation more clearly.
By engaging people, I tell my own story. Parallels to my life back then in the 70s and 80s are emerging. I creep through the social housing of the suburbs again and again and find myself standing before my childhoods front door. I encounter things, places and most important people I once ran away from in fear of becoming them. Today I speak their language and see that I am carved from the same wood.
‘aye‘ replaces any gap in this language and not only means ‘yes‘ or ‘what?‘ but also shows consent and encouragement – exactly what I look for in this city.
Finally I am able to capture things with the camera, always with the look of a child who discovers his surroundings and meets people and learns to appreciate them.
