The nearby twin-jet system in the low-luminosity active nucleus of NGC 1052 is an ideal target for mm-VLBI studies of jet formation on the smallest accessible scales. At cm-wavelength, NGC 1052 is well known for its prominent emission gap between the two jets, that is caused by free-free absorption in a circumnuclear torus. GMVA observations taken in October 2004 peer through the absorber, revealing an isolated high brightness-temperature feature located between two fairly symmetric jets. A detailed analysis at 43 GHz identifies this central feature as the kinematic center of the source, and thus defines the location of the central engine. The varying jet-to-counterjet flux ratio and morphology of the two jets over 4 yr of VLBA data is difficult to explain under the assumption of an intrinsically symmetric bipolar jet system.