Catherine Opie "The pause that dreams against erasure"

The Fridericianum presents the first institutional solo exhibition of Catherine Opie in Germany, alongside the artist's exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in London. The presentation has been specially designed by the artist for the Fridericianum, allowing the works to engage in a dialogue with the architecture and history of the historic building. Central groups of works from over thirty years are displayed: from early portrait photographs in the LGBTQIA* communities, through photographic series that explore landscapes as resonant spaces for identity, hopes, and traumas, to the documentations of movements like Black Lives Matter or of protest marches in the context of Donald Trump's presidency. The questions of what makes a person, which influences shape them into what characterizes them, how a detachment from determining societal influences is possible, and what alternative life designs could be realistic options form the central framework for Catherine Opie's work. Since the early 1990s, the artist has been working on a complex body of work that includes primarily photographs, but also films, art books, and installations. Opie draws on the traditions of socially oriented photography of the 20th century and subjects them to a far-sighted, empathetic updating. In doing so, she establishes her own visual language and aesthetics, making her – along with the societal relevance of her themes – one of the most influential positions of the present.