Gundula Schulze Eldowy. From the series Berlin in einer Hundenacht (Berlin on a Dog’s Night) Berlin 1987 © Gundula Schulze Eldowy.
30 years ago the Berlin Wall was demolished, bringing about the collapse of the German Democratic Republic (GDR). With this year’s anniversary, a greater scrutiny has been afforded to the experiences and output of those living in East Germany—particularly how, in spite of an oppressive government, many citizens found innovative ways to express their freedom and creativity. Among these, were a crop of photographers who took it upon themselves to capture the underground subcultures of the time as well as taking a radically probing look at the body. Now, a photobook, The Freedom Within Us: East German Photography 1980-1989 gathers together the work of 16 pioneering image-makers from this place and time as a visual documentation of East German creative resistance.
Presenting the work of Ute Mahler, Sibylle Bergemann, Sven Marquardt, Gabriele Stötzer, Manfred Paul, and a number of others, The Freedom Within Us is an incredible tribute to the bravery and vision of this band of photographers. Working against a backdrop of Stasi surveillance, limited individual freedoms and restrictive borders, these image-makers used photography as a means to covertly challenge the status quo and infiltrate an authoritarian system by making subversive images that highlight the beauty, banality and boldness of the body. Following on from the exhibition, Restless Bodies: East German Photography 1980-1989 at Rencontres des Arles, The Freedom Within Us is a powerful celebration of the strength of the subject—the individual with all their hope, dreams and free will of their own.
The Freedom Within Us: East German Photography 1980-1989 is out now from Walter Koenig books. Presentation on 12 December from 7-9pm.