The photo of a set design model is a delusion, it gives the impression as if the performance had already taken place. Models have a discreet energy that increases when they are photographed. The philosopher Gaston Bachelard has kindly banalized the work on the miniature as “a metaphysical balancing exercise in order to be world-creative at a low risk.” Hardly anybody is more aware of this than the stage designer Johannes Schütz. Whether at the Vienna Burgtheater, at the Deutsches Theater, Berlin, or at the Hamburger Schauspielhaus – his works are simple, radical and clear at the same time. The formal rigor that Schütz designs with extreme care is an invitation to worlds where you can lose yourself as well as concentrate. The publication makes it possible not only to immerse oneself in these stage rooms on the basis of the photographed models, but also to get to know the work of the acclaimed stage designer in exciting interviews.
