Concerned with both the literal and the political invisibility of radioactivity, Susanne Kriemann, for several years, conducted research at the American Museum of Natural History (New York), the National Archives (Washington, DC), the Museum of Natural History (Berlin), and the Museum Uranbergbau (Bad Schlema).

In “Pechblende (Chapter 1)”, Susanne Kriemann reflects on the artistic possibilities of making the invisible visible. She employs both analog photographic methods and auto-radiography – a technique in which light-sensitive material is directly exposed to radioactive objects. Combining her auto-radiographs with archival material and museum objects, the artist literally illuminates the radiation that is capable of remaining invisible despite the light it emits.

In parallel with this exhibition, the prologue to Susanne Kriemann’s work can be viewed at Prefix Institute of Contemporary Art, Toronto, until March 26, 2016. In “Pechblende (Prologue)”, the artist combines her own auto-radiographs and photograms with archival images drawn from various sources, including aerial and scientific photographs that demonstrate how animal, plant and human life is contaminated by radiation.