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America and the gold rush
von • by Sarah Eick

www.saraheick.mypixieset.com

Sarah Eick, a Berlin resident by choice, has been travelling the

USA since 2001 – her camera is her constant companion. Eick

discovered her passion for photography while studying art his-

tory, philosophy and applied cultural sciences at the Westfälis-

che Wilhelms University in Münster. Since then, she has been

working as a freelance photographer in Berlin and can look

back on numerous exhibitions. In the photo series she created

during several of her trips to America, she focuses on man-

made buildings such as petrol stations, service stations,

wooden huts and other abandoned places in what she sees as

a dwindling reality and, through her photographs, allows them

to persist in the future. The fact that humans exist in these

places and environments only as a small element is clearly re-

flected in the photographs: they depict only a few or no people.

Fascinated by the life and tranquillity away from everyday life

and the hustle and bustle of big American cities like New York,

dedicated enthusiasts lovers of Hollywood films will discover

references to the days of the gold rush and well-familiar set-

tings. Eick’s pictorial style can be described as a mixture of

photography and various art techniques; familiar-looking

sceneries combined with delicate pastel nuances and bright
daylight add a nostalgic filter to the images, giving the impres-

sion that they emerge directly from the photographer’s mem-

ory. As a result, the photographs stimulate the viewer’s imagi-

nation, let them indulge in thoughts and develop stories

around the motifs. Eick’s “old America” therefore does not feel

as if it were a faraway country on the other side of the hemi-

sphere but appears almost tangible.