THE CLOSEST IT GETS TO GOD (2015 & 2021)
This project visualizes biblical quotes through a reference image that symbolizes innocence. The concept is rooted in the idea that artificial intelligence can only generate content based on its dataset — just as a priest interprets the Bible within the framework of „his“ own „humanoid dataset,“ shaped by time, place, political context, and education. A European priest from the 12th century would interpret the Bible differently than a South American priest from the 23rd century.
Jean Baudrillard’s Simulacra and Simulation served as a central theoretical inspiration. Baudrillard explores the relationship between reality, symbols, and society, examining how culture and media shape collective perceptions of existence. In his work, he describes simulacra as copies that may lack an original or never had one to begin with. Simulation, on the other hand, is the imitation of real-world processes or systems over time.
Within this framework, a preacher could be seen as a kind of dataset, whose interpretations are shaped by factors such as birthplace, education, and social environment. These influences determine how the written word is understood. Similarly, an AI tool like NightCafe, which converts text into images, functions through big data—another mechanism that shapes the interpretation of language. This underscores that an AI’s understanding of the Bible would be a simulacrum of the original: it is built upon a copy of reality rather than reality itself and may therefore lack a certain depth and nuance of human comprehension.
The starting image, INNOCENCE, was originally created in Paris in 2015. It is a digital composition of two photographs taken at different times. The photographers never knew each other and lived in different eras, yet their works are now forever intertwined within this image. The symbolic core of this piece is innocence. A naked man floating in water represents the rawest form of human existence — an innocence inherent in every person at birth. This purity is meant to be considered before life unfolds. Just as the stories in the Bible offer guidance on the consequences of one’s choices.
The two deer in the image, inspired by the natural surroundings I grew up in, symbolize innocence as well. They belong to a rare species that still roams free, mainly untouched by modern domestication.

Hahnemühle FineArt Baryta, 2015

60x80cm, Hahnemühle FineArt Baryta, 2021

60x80cm, Hahnemühle FineArt Baryta, 2021
