In Lucy’s Shoe I (2026), Eric Asamoah focuses on a seemingly ordinary object: a shoe of his grandmother Lucy. The aged leather, the wrinkles, and the traces of use tell of an eventful life, journeys taken, and experiences that made their mark over decades. The shoe functions as a silent bearer of memory and time—a material witness of personal history that raises questions about ancestry and family heritage that goes beyond the individual.
Austrian photographer Eric Asamoah (b. 1999 in Linz; based in Vienna and Paris) uses portraits to explore questions of identity, memory, and representation under the influence of transnational perspectives and experiences within the Ghanaian diaspora. His oeuvre is characterized by a cautious, contemplative approach. Curator Mona Schubert observes, “Eric Asamoah is one of the formative voices of the younger Austrian photography scene. His highly regarded photo books and exhibition are characterized by a poetic visual language that stems from the encounter with subjects of his portraits and the interweaving of personal stories with collective experiences.”
Asamoah’s new project, As Our Hearts Bow (2026), combines two aspects: In the first part, he explores photographs from albums of the 1970s to 1990s, most of which were taken by the women in his family. In addition to documenting everyday realities and special occasions in the life of an immigrant family, these pictures also highlight how the photographic gaze is transmitted over generations. In the second part, Asamoah builds on this archival approach and creates a conceptual series in which the shoes of his grandmother Lucy are the focus.
The exhibition is accompanied by the publication As Our Hearts Bow (Distanz, Berlin, 2026). It contains essays by Renée Mussai and exhibition curator Mona Schubert.
