Yearning, vulnerability, self-image, and desire—all of this can be found in the densely atmospheric photographs by Florian Geiss (*1969 in Koblenz, Germany), which emanate a fascinating, yet disturbing aura. Gimme Shelter is a book whose photographs focus on their protagonists’ search for identity and individuality within the iconic, tense context known as the American way of life. With their interplay of light and shadow, and minimal, yet succinct colors, these works of art unite formal elements of cinematic advertising aesthetics with traditional American color photography. Intimate portraits and panoramic landscape pictures open up spaces for questions about belonging and unconventionality, dreams of life, and reality.