In times when the political landscape darkens into apparent inevitability, when structures of control
slip beyond individual agency, the only fundamental shift remains inward—a deepening of
self-awareness within the undercurrents of historical disruption. Intellectual and cultural formation
ceases to be merely a physical or social liminality and instead takes on the character of a metaphysical
trajectory, oriented toward an inner sovereignty. Schatzalp, the symbolic retreat in Thomas Mann’s
The Magic Mountain, emerges as a mirage of detached existence, a deceiving sanctuary of safety
where time dissolves into an eerie equilibrium between contemplation and isolation. Yet this summit
is not merely a site of salvation—it is also a space of ideological confrontation, where distance from
reality paradoxically sharpens its contours. The exhibition assumes a similar role, a gravitational point
of longing, an unreachable elevation that serves both as refuge and as a test of the limits of perception.
This exhibition brings together the works of six artists, each offering their own interpretation of the
themes of isolation, and transcendence, creating a collective narrative that reflects the liminal nature
of artistic oasis and the search for salvation in times of uncertainty.

Klara Marlene Fischer (b. 2002, Leipzig) has been studying at the Academy of Fine Arts Leipzig
since 2020 in the Painting Class of Prof. Kerstin Drechsel and the Installation and Space Class of
Prof. Joachim Blank. Working with wood, steel, and linen, she creates installations and paintings.

Kyuhyun Kim (b. 1991, Busan, South Korea) is a painter based in Leipzig. Since 2023, he has studied
Painting at HGB Leipzig under Professors Henriette Grahnert, Franziska Holstein, Franz Jyrch, and
Ivana de Vivanco. Previously, he studied Free Art at Bauhaus-Universität Weimar (2021–2023) under
Prof. Jana Gunstheimer and earned a Painting degree at Sejong University, Seoul (2011–2018).

Sofia Nogueira (b. 1995, Belo Horizonte, Brazil) is a visual artist based in Leipzig. She is completing
her Diploma (MFA) at HGB Leipzig in the class of Franziska Reinbothe. Her studies included an
exchange at École nationale supérieure d’arts de Paris Cergy and work with Anne Speier and Ingo
Meller. She has received a German National Academic Foundation scholarship and NEUSTART
KULTUR funding.

Elias Saile (b. 2001, Filderstadt; raised in Bad Urach) has studied Painting and Graphics at HGB
Leipzig since 2021. In 2024, he joined the class of Ivana de Vivanco, after studying under Prof.
Henriette Grahnert and Prof. Franziska Holstein (2023). Before that, he completed foundational
studies with Prof. Christian Weihrauch and Ivana de Vivanco (2022–2023) and Prof. Jörg Ernert
(2021–2022).

Sabina Lăpteanu (b. 2000, Chișinău, Moldova) is a painter based in Leipzig. She graduated from
HKU Utrecht Fine Arts and now studies at the Academy of Fine Arts Leipzig. Her work examines
human traces in nature, balancing the familiar with the ambiguous.

Paul Weiher (b. 1996, Berlin) studied philosophy and literature at Freie Universität Berlin before
beginning his studies at HGB Leipzig in 2022. He is currently in the Painting Class of Ivana de
Vivanco.

Exhibition organized with Elisaveta Kruk