From window views to windows on view

‍Opening: Saturday, 16th of September 2023, 7 – 9 PM

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CHAUSSEE 36 Photo Foundation is pleased to present a new group exhibition exploring the motif of the window in photography.

Windows, these fundamental, often banal openings, bridge and simultaneously frame the interior and exterior and so are intrinsic to the process and outcome of image creation. It is no coincidence that the first successful print in the history of photography, taken by Nicéphore Niepce in 1827, captures the view from the window of his house.

From this moment forth, windows, whether in the background of a composition or as the main subject, have appeared in every genre of the photographic medium.

As a framework for exploring the world, the Other, and sometimes oneself, the window fascinates and questions.

The group exhibition 'From window views to windows on view' gathers a unique selection of photographs from the Collection De Gambs and the Heinz Hajek-Halke Estate.  Offering a visual journey through the themes of the collection - historical, nude, and experimental photography - this presentation brings together prints from the 1930s to the 2020s, many of which are being shown for the first time. Photography masters such as Brassai, Robert Doisneau and Karin Székessy accompany this wander.

From window views to windows on view, the images exhibited offer a variety of perspectives. With its geometric structure, the window is an ideal frame for aesthetic compositions. Some photographers play on its effects of transparency to create a foggy reality. Others explore its source of light to bring out their subjects in intimate backlighting. As the junction between the interior and exterior worlds, the window also acquires a symbolic function in some images.

Open to curiosity, contemplation, voyeurism, and infinite daydreams, the window is most inviting to creation.

Exhibiting Artists: Björn Albert, Erwin Blumenfeld, Bill Brandt, Brassai, Alain Daussin, Robert Doisneau, De Gambs, Francois Dupuy, Bastian Gehbauer, René Groebli, Heinz Hajek-Halke, Sam Haskins, Eva Ionesco, Wolfgang Krolow, Will McBride, Bruno Merbitz, Michael Ruetz, André Sas, Jan Saudek, Toni Schneiders, Karin Székessy, Jerry Norman Uelsmann, Harf Zimmermann