CAMERA WORK Gallery presents the exhibition Hawai‘i with works by Berlin-based photographer Olaf Heine. The exhibition includes over 40 monochrome, partly large-format works from the long-standing, conceptually conceived series Hawai‘i. The accompanying photo book to the exhibition Hawai‘i (teNeues Verlag) is available now.
“Is there any place more thoroughly photographed than Hawai‘i? Even if you’ve never visited the islands, you probably think you at least know what they look like. Then along comes Olaf Heine with these ravishing images, and you’re confronted with a place that you’ve never seen before.”
Pulitzer Prize Winner William Finnegan
The photographer Olaf Heine is an essayist of our time whose œuvre is characterized by profoundly composed narration. This includes his observations of the Hawai‘i island chain, which the internationally renowned artist has been photographically describing for many years in unprecedented variety. He captures the ocean as the architect of those eight islands, which also defines the rhythm of life of its inhabitants. The complexity of this interplay becomes clear in Heine’s work. In addition to powerful nature photography, it also touches on socially relevant aspects, from which emerges a holistic view of Hawai‘i. Tradition and everyday life as well as seemingly untouched nature and human influence are reflected as omnipresent contrasts and unified by Heine’s clear visual language. With the »Hawai‘i« series, the arVst has created an allegory of the local attitude to life.
Olaf Heine (*1968) is internationally renowned for his enigmatic and detailed portraits of artists and athletes as well as his impressive architecture and landscape photography. After studying photography and communication design at the renowned Lette Verein in Berlin, he made his international breakthrough when he moved to Los Angeles in the late 1990s. Since then, he has created world-famous portraits of personalities such as Cate Blanchel, Nick Cave, Kurt Cobain, Coldplay, The Eagles, and U2. Olaf Heine also established himself as a director for award-winning music videos, short films, and commercials and played a decisive role in shaping the visual language of many bands. His photographic works have been published on numerous album and magazine covers as well as in six photo books: »Leaving the Comfort Zone« (2008), »I Love You But I’ve Chosen Rock« (2011), »Brazil« (2014, 2024), »Rwandan Daughters« (2019), »Human Conditions« (2022), and »Hawai‘i« (2024) — and are part of renowned private and public collections. Olaf Heine currently lives and works between Berlin and Los Angeles.
Olaf Heine : Hawai’i
April 20 – June 1, 2024
CAMERA WORK AG
Kantstrasse 149
10623 Berlin
Germany
www.camerawork.de
