"To love is to heed the call of what needs to be done. To love is to give life, give energy and depth to one's own life, by caring for the aliveness of the world."
"To love is to heed the call of what needs to be done. To Love is to give life, give energy and depth to one's own life, by caring for the aliveness of the world."
May there be dragons
The book “KOMODO – In Pursuit of the Living Legends” captures the giant lizards in visually stunning photographs and great scientific detail. Artfully interwoven among these chronicles is Volker’s own noteworthy tale of self-realisation.
An inventive fusion of two genres, ‘the coffee table book meets memoir’ is as aesthetically pleasing as it is eloquent and expressive in its storytelling. Through poignant recollections spanning over two decades, join Volker in this remote part of the world for a captivating adventure that is a truly unique journey of one’s lifetime.
Dive Into the Wild to check out some sample pages or swing by the Art Shop to purchase the book and browse the curated selection of Volker’s creations.

Volker Kess
Volker Kess
Photographer, Author and
Environmental Philosopher
From the foreword:
“In his book, Volker has heeded the call of his totem animal. In the memoir and nature writing that complement his images we can read what his response to this call has meant for him, for his life, and for the Komodo dragons.
To love is to give life, give energy and depth to one’s own life by caring for the aliveness of the world. In order to keep the world fertile, we have to allow ourselves to love.
This book reminds us that we still can.”
Dr. Andreas Weber, Environmental Philosopher
Posters, prints & more...
In addition to KOMODO, get exclusive posters and prints from the book and other photographic works of Volker Kess.
Posters, prints & more
In addition to the book, get exclusive posters and prints from the Komodo Book and other photographic works of Volker Kess.
It almost reads like a diary
“I just purchased Volker Kess’ KOMODO Book and love both the stories and the photographs. The stories are wonderful to read and provide a lot of insight about Indonesia’s precious wildlife. It almost reads like a diary. A great joy to take home after a beautiful holiday in the Komodo National Park”
A. Auffermann
It almost reads like a diary
“I just purchased Volker Kess’ Komodo Book and love both the stories and the photographs. The stories are wonderful to read and provide a lot of insight about Indonesia’s precious wildlife. It almost reads like a diary. A great joy to take home after a beautiful holiday in the Komodo National Park”
A. Auffermann