In Passes: Gotthard, three significant layers of snow blend in a sky that has become imperceptible with the vanishing of the horizon line. The layers bear down on the roof with all their weight. The sensation is reinforced by the photographer’s decision to frame the house at a low angle, which brings out its solidity – through its robust construction – and at the same time its fragility – through the precariousness of a situation that could worsen at any moment.

Gripped by the sheer poetry of these images, viewers may lose themselves in meditative contemplation and overlook the threatening aspect of the weather conditions. Flechtner raises the question of the place we humans occupy in time and space vis-à-vis a nature that imposes its own limits. The photographer experienced this himself whilst shooting his image, alone before this vast expanse and its thousands of white hues.