From a height of three meters, porcelain figurines are dropped on the ground, and the sound they make when they hit trips the shutter release. The result: razor-sharp images of disturbing beauty—temporary sculptures made visible to the human eye by high-speed photography technology. The porcelain statuette bursting into pieces isn't what really captures the attention; the fascination lies in the genesis of a dynamic figure that replaces the static pose. In contrast to the inertness of the intact kitsch figurines Klimas started out with, the photographs of their destruction possess a powerfully narrative character.

A Nepalese woman pours milk as she offers prayers to the setting Sun on the banks of the Bagmati River during the Chhath Puja festival in Kathmandu, Nepal, Sunday, November 6, 2016. During Chhath, an ancient Hindu festival, rituals are performed to thank the Sun God for sustaining life on earth. (Photo by Niranjan Shrestha/AP Photo)

A cat sits in the flooding waters from Hurricane Matthew in downtown Nichols, South Carolina, October 10, 2016. (Photo by Randall Hill/Reuters)

Ukrainian servicemen fire toward Russian troops with a tank at a position in Donetsk region, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, Ukraine on August 12, 2022. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

An alligator devours a fish carcass he stole from a raven in Big Cypress National Preserve in Florida on November 24, 2022. The Big Cypress Swamp is a freshwater swampland located near the Everglades National Park. (Photo by Ronen Tivony/SOPA Images/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

A general view shows a column of steam emerging from Popocatepetl volcano, after an increase in volcanic activity with steam and ash eruptions have been registered recently, according to local media, as seen from San Andres Cholula municipality, in the state of Puebla, Mexico on February 1, 2023. (Photo by Henry Romero/Reuters)

Allie Plott, Lydia Smith, Madeline Evans and Ellie Boulware, members of The Tuscaloosa Community Dancers, prepare for a dress rehearsal of The Nutcracker at the Bama Theatre in Tuscaloosa, Alabama on December, 5, 2023. (Photo by Gary Cosby Jr./Tuscaloosa News)

A dragon dance performer greets a traveler from China at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, in Pasay City, Metro Manila, Philippines on January 24, 2023. (Photo by Lisa Marie David/Reuters)