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.

German photographer Martin Klimas, who you may remember from his exploding porcelain figure series, creates breathtaking photos of flowers exploding into a million beautiful pieces. To achieve this effect, he soaks the petals in liquid nitrogen to make them brittle and hits the flower with an air gun.

A man (bottom) suspected of shooting former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe is tackled to the ground by police at Yamato Saidaiji Station in the city of Nara on July 8, 2022. Shinzo Abe was shot at a campaign event on July 8, a government spokesman said, as local media reported the nation's longest-serving premier was showing no vital signs. (Photo by Yomiuri Shimbun/AFP Photo)

An Indian Royal Bengal tiger looks on at an enclosure on World Tiger Day at Alipore Zoo, Kolkata, India, 29 July 2019. Kolkata zoo authority added a new Tiger to the zoo for the visitors to mark the Tiger Day. Students of Kolkata are also taking part in an awareness campaign aiming to draw attention to the threats that tigers face due to habitat loss and poaching. (Photo by Piyal Adhikary/EPA/EFE)

Fan Bing Bing, Concha de Plata (Silver Shell) award winnerfor best actress for the feature film “I Am Not Madame Bovary” speaks on her telephone during the awards ceremony at the San Sebastian Film Festival, September 24, 2016, in San Sebastian, northern Spain. (Photo by Vincent West/Reuters)