Aeronautes. Herzogowskie ujęcie z lotu ptaka
Aeronautes: Herzogian Aerial Shots

Summary/Abstract: The author of the essay takes up the subject of characteristic Herzogian aerial shots. Understanding Werner Herzog’s documentaries as an epistemological project, she draws attention to the role of sky-high perspective in his search for new, “unused” images – that is, in the process which, in Herzog’s opinion, is mankind’s key task. Following researchers such as Teresa Castro, Eric Ames, Brad Prager, and Laurie Ruth Johnson, the author proves that Herzog’s aerial shots have a cognitive function and are used as a means of constructing “alien geographies”, in which real landscapes are transformed into “landscapes of the soul”. The White Diamond (2004) is placed at the centre of this discussion, being a metafilm in which Herzog comments on his own visual practices, and reveals both his motivations and the realization process, as well as the benefits of adopting the aeronautes’ perspective.

• Details
• Contents