Curated by Matthias Flügge, an exhibition titled “Whole City,” dedicated to the German art photography movement and showing at Istanbul’s Milli Reasürans Art Gallery, takes its name from a series of works by Max Ernst.
Instead of approaching the art of photography digitally, or through other technologically advanced means, works in the exhibition are pure, traditional forms of photography that have not been digitally enhanced in any way. The exhibition thus shows authentic methods of artistic production that remain true to the traditions that shaped them.
The exhibition brings images of urban transformation to the fore, with photographs mainly focused on buildings and urban scenes. “Whole City” also reflects a way of living in the city, with other photos combining scenes of natural and cultural urban areas. Streets, people, crowds, and urban movement are the main thematic gazes the photographers have dwelt on.
“Whole City” prompts ideas about contemporary Germany; and not merely the streets of Germany, but also the political and cultural situations the country is in are reflected the photographs of artists Zoltán Jókay, Andreas Rost, Maria Sewcz, Ulrich Wüst, Tomo Yamaguchi and Eva Bertram.
The photographers have focused on identity in the city and the urban environment and how such themes merge and change according to the prevalence of a given cultural or political perspective. However, the six photographers showing in the exhibition also create their own characters and images in order to reflect their own aesthetic concerns.