The Beauty of Buddha

The creation of Buddha figures has an ancient tradition going back more than 2,500 years. The representations of Buddha always portray an ideal of human existence. Although often seen as archetypical’, these representations have significant, though subtle, differences, lending themselves to meditation.
This publication closely examines the extensive collection of Burmese Buddhas belonging to Sabine Meister from the perspective of the artist and photographer Hubertus Hamm. The figures are beautifully staged and the resulting portraits surpass mere photography. Hamm has entered into an intense dialogue with these masterpieces. He reflects on their meaning, both as an artist and as a human being, and throughout creates pictorial spaces for them, while trying to provide photographic answers to metaphysical questions. This illustrated volume reveals the beauty of the Sabine Meister collection to the viewer, but also provides the reader with a point of access to the spiritual position of Zen.