Wolfgang Ernst Pauli, one of the founders of quantum physics, was nicknamed the "Conscience of Physics". But he was also known among his peers for something a bit less scientific.

Legend says that when Pauli entered a room, experiments would fail and machinery would break down. His colleagues jokingly called this phenomenon "The Pauli Effect".

Even though this was a private joke among highly scientific minds, some of them were nonetheless superstitious enough to ban Wolfgang Pauli from even entering their lab.

CERN recently released their photo archive spanning thirty years of cutting edge research. Wolfgang Pauli died shortly before this archive started but his presence still lingers; on a bust, a blackboard, a portrait, a book etc. Thus starts this "scientific ghost story" where maybe even accidents and strange events are also a reminder of Pauli's existence. Some images are manipulated by the artist, while others are left untouched. Art, photography, history and science collide, blurring the line between science fact and science fiction. The mystery and humor arise from the playful games the reader must take part in, to separate myth from reality.

All manipulations by the artist 2015-2016
All images from CERN Photo Archive 1960-1985

After completing a Masters' degree in Mathematics & Computer Science, David Fathi starts an artistic research in photography side-by-side with his career in engineering. This double practice can be perceived in his photographic work as an intense passion for science and the limits of knowledge.