Der Himmel meines Bruders

"The Sky of My Brother" is a collection of short stories by Ivo Knill. They revolve around the death of his brother Franco Knill, who took his own life in the spring of 2017. The forms vary between biographical narrative, fictional stories, and autofictional experiments. The perspective is always exploratory: How can we approach the incomprehensible? Where is a place for our dead? How do we continue to live when a loved one has passed away? The texts are accompanied by images from Franco Knill's photography project: In 2013, he photographed the view from his office window daily, capturing the Säntis mountain and the slope of Hundwiler Höhe. In the interplay of image and text, the two brothers meet across the boundary of death. "The Sky of My Brother" is a book about a profoundly difficult experience, yet it concludes with an optimistic outlook: Grief teaches us to appreciate the value of life. At the same time, it is a book about writing, as writing offers a means of retreat, reflection, and immersion in the challenging emotions of grief, leading to a resurgence of new vitality.