This past summer a new complex of buildings in Neu-Ulm (Germany) opened to the public. It is owned by The Walter Family Foundation and the stated purpose is to show photography. In addition to exhibitions the beautifully conceived spaces will be used for curatorial research, expansion of the collecton and the publication of books and catalogues. At present, the Foundation has over 700 photographs in its archive.
The first exhibition on view, “Events of the Self: Portraiture and Social Identity” shows an impressive range of African photography along with August Sander’s work “Faces of Our Time” published in 1929, and other contemporary German photographers. The photographic works currently owned by the Foundation and included in the exhibition are by Samuel Fosso, Santu Mofokeng, Zwelethu Mthethwa, Seydou Keita, Malick Sidibe, David Goldblatt and Karl Blossfeldt and many others. The exhibit was curated by Okwui Enwezor who contirubted an informative and readable essay to the very handsome catalogue published by Steidl Gottingen.
According to the founder Artur Walter, the exhibitions and their curators will change once a year. (In a recent visit it was heard this intent may be extended to every two years now that it is known how much work is involved.) In the coming summer “Appropriated Landscapes”, an exhibition of contemporary African landscape photography will be opening at the Neu-Ulm venue on June 11, 2011. Curated by Corinne Diserens it will include the work of Jane Alexander, Mitch Epstein, Angela Ferreira, Peter Friedl, David Goldblatt, Christine Meisner, Sabelo Mlangeni, Santu Mofokeng, Zanele Muholi, Jo Ractliffe, Penny Siopis, Mikhael Subotzky/Patrick Waterhouse and Guy Tillim.
The Walther Collection
Reichenauerstrasse 21
89233 Neu-Ulm, Germany
