From his home on Hong Kong’s Cheung Chau shore, Michael Wolf has been photographing sunrises for the past two years, from 5:30am to 7:30am each morning, developing the concept of a new series, both inspired by paintings and topographic photography.

The fascinating shots of these timeless and as well tran- sient natural spectacles, appear as a contrast to the previous work of Michael Wolf, which addressed the lack of space and the adaptation to economic condi- tions in large cities. In the context of his socio-critical work, Wolfs Discovery of Heaven and the Horizon is to be understood as a draft of freedom, in a place that is synonymous with extreme working and living condi- tions.

Now for the first time, the series Cheung Chau Sunriseshas been shown in the retrospective exhibition Michael Wolf—Life in Cities at the Haus der Photographie in Hamburg.

Wolf was awarded first prize in the World Press Photo competition in 2005 and 2010, and as well an honora- ble mention in 2011. In 2010, and again in 2017 he was shortlisted for the Prix Pictet photography prize.

攝影師 Michael Wolf 生前最後的著作－《長洲日出》以拍攝香港海灣日出的景象，擴展至繪畫和自由的維度。Michael 從他位於香港長洲岸邊的家中，兩年間他每天花費清晨的兩小時從5:30am到7:30am把長洲的日出記錄，並發展成這系列的新概念。這些永恆而又短暫的自然影像，與 Michael 從前的作品形成了鮮明對比，後者主要探討大城市下的空間不足和經濟狀況等問題。對比起他充滿社會批判性的創作，在這個代名詞為極端工作和生活的城市之下，《長洲日出》可被理解為一份自由的草稿。