Annelies Štrba

Štrba’s work is concerned with notions of time and history; subjects which she expresses in a metaphorical and highly personal way. Her work is sometimes romantic, sometimes disarmingly frank, Štrba focuses her attention on fleeting and often seemingly insignificant moments, yet she never attempts to freeze time, rather there is an overwhelming sense of connection between the present and the past.

'I can only work when I feel lots of connections with people and places. Only stories can produce theses connections. That’s why I have to know the (hi)stories of places and people. In my photographs I try to find something that corresponds to these stories. The photographs must be able to bear the story.' – Annelies Štrba

In the past Štrba has approached a wide range of subjects; from the earthquake-stricken city of Kobe or the gloom of Auschwitz to wild flowers on the Brontë Moor. Her attention is most often turned towards her family and their home at Melide, Switzerland, a place with an unmistakable aura. These intimate snapshots are never voyeuristic but result in extraordinary, artful compositions. At Frith Street Gallery, Štrba’s luminous video work is shown alongside stills which frame personal moments. Otherworldly scenes of night-time Paris or the view from a ferry trip around Manhattan, her images defy any attempt at dissection yet they are mysteriously resonant.

Neither completely constructed nor purely the product of chance Štrba’s images are part of a vast archive or visual diary. Her working process is only concluded when the images are exhibited, often a number of variants of the same story emerge and connections are made visible. Making pictures is part of the Annelies Štrba’s everyday life, it is her way of engaging with and making sense of her world.