INHERENT

A photo series by Alice Nordio & Stefan Armbruster

A suggestion of form, the strength of shadow, the power of light.
In this collaborative project between Italian creative Alice Nordio and German photographer Stefan Armbruster, the intrinsic nature of contrast unfolds across a series of intimate monochromatic images.
Expanding the symbolic tension of the black and white squares of a chessboard, Inherent explores difference as a means of unveiling
inner dichotomies, reassessing the architectures that dominate our everyday. As handcrafted vessels by the Swiss brand Linck Ceramics interplay with the contours of the human body, the palette of opposites shifts into a conceptual framework, exposing how light shapes shadow and absence defines presence. The rhythm of an intimate game is unveiled, a visual chess match played between two creative counterparts.
Touching upon Surrealist dialogues, from Man Ray's portrait of Picasso's painted hands, to Lee Miller's lyrical object-body hybrids, Inherent lingers on the interconnectedness of all forms. Sculptural ceramics are clutched by outstretched fingers, nestled in the trunk of a tree, dappled by shade, set next to the natural folds of the female body. In this way, the series opens a contemplative space, inviting viewers to explore the shifting relationship between contrasts, to observe the unseen threads that bind opposites, to recognise that contrast is not imposed but an inherent part of visual understanding.
With their shared aesthetic language, Nordio and Armbruster remind us that beauty resides in tension, and meaning is found in the space between.