Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, curators in the US and Europe have become increasingly interested in the diverse photographic practices that emerged in the German Democratic Republic (GDR, 1949–1989). As a result, several exhibitions have offered insight into some of the country’s most celebrated photographers. While a handful have focused on women photographers and the conditions that allowed them—like women in other fields—to have successful careers in the GDR, no major survey has been dedicated to this topic since 1989/1990, when Gabriele Muschter curated DDR Frauen fotografieren (GDR Women Photograph).
To address this gap, the Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura & Hayama, in collaboration with Stiftung Reinbeckhallen, presents Unprecedented: Women Photographers from the GDR. The exhibition brings together the work of fifteen remarkable women photographers—Tina Bara, Christine Becker, Sibylle Bergemann, Christiane Eisler, Gundula Schulze Eldowy, Margit Emmrich, Ute Mahler, Eva Mahn, Elisabeth Meinke, Helga Paris, Evelyn Richter, Maria Sewcz, Gabriele Stötzer, Brigitte Voigt, and Renate Zeun—highlighting how they collectively enriched the visual culture of the GDR through sustained attention to everyday life, corporeal experience, and formal experimentation.
As Japan’s first public museum dedicated to modern and contemporary art, the Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura & Hayama is considered one of the country’s most important art institutions. Renowned for its diverse program at the intersection of art, architecture, and nature, the museum has played a significant role in shaping Japan’s cultural dialogue since its opening in 1951.
A bilingual exhibition catalogue in English and Japanese, published by HeHe Press, will accompany the exhibition. Unprecedented: Women Photographers from the GDR is a collaboration between the Reinbeckhallen Foundation and the Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura & Hayama, with support from Loock Galerie.
The project is funded by the ifa – Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations (Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen).
