The Berlin aesthetic has taken over. Synonymous with high contrast, grainy analogue images of the city’s hedonistic rave scene, peppered with grey concrete, grunge-wear and grand graffiti gestures, you’d be forgiven for thinking there was only way to capture the German capital. But there’s more to the city’s creative output than trash and techno, and the enterprising image-makers at Ostkreuzschule for Photography, are testament to that. Year after year, the renowned school produces a pool of visionary graduates, who go on to become Berlin’s next big things. So, on the eve of 2018’s Year Twelve exhibition opening, we take a look at this year’s best in show.
Søren Drastrup
Since moving from Copenhagen to Berlin five years ago, Søren Drastrup has quickly made a name for himself among the city’s creative scene. Through his intimate portraits of the city’s youth and the subcultures that surround them, Drastrup’s photographs provide a raw and real insight into the people that make Berlin tick — its diverse and characterful inhabitants — the freaks, the outsiders and the so-called misfits who find a home in this eclectic metropolis. Lensing lovers, friends and acquaintances, Drastrup’s work is inevitably personal, yet it speaks to anyone who identifies with the complex insecurities and emotions that bind us as human beings. His work has been featured in SLEEK, Vice, INDIE and Schön magazines, but as he joins Ostkreuzschule’s graduating class, we’re sure even bigger things are on the horizon.
Charlott Cobler
Exploring love in its purest and most intuitive form, Charlott Cobler’s tender photographs reveal the strength of the innate bond between siblings. Her intimate portraits explore the visceral ties between two people bound by blood, and hone in on the nuances and particularities that are intrinsic to sister and brotherhood. Her nostalgic images, beautifully realised in black and white, enhance the similarities between siblings, while revealing the differences that makes them unique.
Bastian Thiery
Even before he was a photographer, Bastian Thiery was no stranger to the camera. Working as a model taught him the intricacies of composition and the art of constructing an image. Turning to street photography some years ago, Thiery’s images capture something quintessential about each city they represent— from the characters of New York to Berlin’s brutal aesthetic. His latest series, Humpelfuchs, on display at the exhibition, was sparked by a chance encounter with an injured neighbourhood fox, who the photographer followed, capturing all the scenes and scenarios he encountered in its path.
Agata Guevera
Potent and political in equal measure, Agata Guevera’s In Limbo speaks of the long-awaited end of 53 years of armed conflict in Colombia. Following the 2016 peace treaty between the country’s government and the former guerrilla group FARC*, Guevera took to Colombia to capture the end of this tumultuous relationship, and the journey towards peace. Photographing ex-rebels residing in transitional camps, Guevera’s images reveal a climate of uncertainty, and a continued tension between calm and conflict, as the election of anti-peace treaty President threatens to jeopardise the country’s peace once again.
Uli Kaufmann
The art of funny photography is one that’s difficult to master, but Uli Kaufmann has got it down. Lensing the peculiarities and puzzles of everyday life in Germany, Kaufmann’s photographs are opportunistic, uncontrived, and refreshingly light. From the gormless hilarity of shocked dogs to the meticulous art of manoeuvring icy concrete, Kaufmann’s images remind us of life’s light reliefs and immortalise them for our viewing pleasure.
Sebastian Wells
They say an image is worth a thousand words, and in our current global climate of displacement and uncertainty, Sebastian Wells’ photographs speak volumes. His latest series, Utopia, centres around the now prolific motif of refugee camps, and explores how the incongruity between temporary solutions and seemingly permanent situations that are a product of desperation and disarray.
Jahrgang Zwölf runs from 5th – 15th October at The Shelf, Prinzenstraße 32-34, with support from EMOP. Don’t miss the opening on Friday at 7pm.