Midnight Refuel at the Georges Festival 2026

How Darkness, Artificial Light, and Long Exposures Change Our Perception of Everyday Architecture

I am very pleased that selected photographs from my series Midnight Refuel will be on display from September 23 to October 11, 2026, at the Georges Festival in Rennes, France. This year’s festival explores the relationship between architecture and the night—a theme that is directly connected to my work during countless nights in southern Spain.

When Architecture Changes After Dark

During the day, the gas stations I photograph for *Midnight Refuel* are functional, almost mundane places. At night, their character changes completely. As soon as the traffic and activity disappear, they become lonely islands of artificial light in the midst of the darkness.

It is precisely this transformation that lies at the heart of *Midnight Refuel*. Long exposures reveal details that remain hidden at first glance. Brightly lit interiors, empty gas stations, fog on the horizon, and the darkness of the surrounding landscape blend into scenes that lie somewhere between architectural documentation and cinematic fiction.

For me, this dialogue between the built environment and darkness makes the Georges Festival a particularly fitting setting for the series. After all, night is more than just the absence of daylight. It changes our perception of architecture—while architecture itself, in turn, shapes the night through light, use, and infrastructure.

Night Photography

Night photography requires a different approach than traditional architectural photography. One of the biggest challenges is the enormous contrast between brightly lit interiors and surroundings that are almost completely shrouded in darkness.

For "Midnight Refuel," I therefore wait until no vehicles are visible in the frame, and then take a series of shots with different exposures. This allows me to capture the full dynamic range of the scene—from the brightest artificial light sources to the finest details in the landscape, clouds, and fog on the horizon.

It is only during post-processing that I combine this information into a final image. In doing so, I want to preserve the special sense of stillness I experience on location, while at the same time revealing details that would be lost in a single shot.

I shoot the entire series exclusively with a Hasselblad X2D and the XCD 38V.

Night as Material

I am all the more delighted that Midnight Refuel will now be part of the exhibition *La nuit pour matière* at the Georges Festival, where it will encounter further perspectives on what happens to architecture when daylight disappears.

The festival brings together architecture with photography, film, installations, talks, and other disciplines. For me, it’s an exciting opportunity to contribute images taken during lonely nights in Andalusia to a broader discourse on architecture, light, and darkness.

Selected works from "Midnight Refuel " will be on view from September 23 to October 11, 2026, at 6 Place de Bretagne in Rennes, France.

If you happen to visit the exhibition, I'd love to hear how you experience the works in person and as large-format prints. Feel free to share your impressions with me on Instagram or tag me in your photos.

Exhibition: La nuit pour matière
Festival: Georges Festival
Location: 6 Place de Bretagne, Rennes, France
Dates: September 23 – October 11, 2026