CHAUSSEE 36: “EROS & PHOTOGRAPHY”

CHAUSSEE 36: “EROS & PHOTOGRAPHY” with works by Moriyama, Ritts, Sieff and v. Unwerth etc.

Following the completion of an elaborate extension and renovation work in 2019/2020, the renowned exhibition space CHAUSSEE 36 in the heart of Berlin-Mitte will re-launch with two top-class exhibitions –which could not be more different.

The group exhibition Behind Desire takes a critical look at the notion of eroticism shaped by patriarchy. Thematically, it follows the spring 2019 exhibition, Women on View – Aesthetics of Desire in Advertising, in which CHAUSSEE 36 critically examined the eroticization of women’s bodies in advertising.

Behind Desire marks the start of the exhibition series EROS & PHOTOGRAPHY and introduces the multifaceted, complex, and powerful implications of eroticism. The exhibition not only aims to foster a comprehensive understanding of eroticism through an aesthetic investigation of the topic, but also to enable visitors to confront their own Eros, looking beyond gender and sexual orientation. In a world in which sex is available with a swipe of a finger and pornography has become omnipresent – what is the significance of eroticism?

The group exhibition Behind Desire – with works by Nobuyoshi Araki, Gilles Berquet, Lucien Clergue, Mona Kuhn, Daidō Moriyama, Herb Ritts, Jeanloup Sieff, Evangeline, Eva Ionesco, and Ellen von Unwerth, as well as Renaud de Gambs, Thomas Hodges and Gérard Musy, among others – introduces the various facets of eroticism and examines the mechanisms of desire in fine art photography. For the first time, works will be shown from the Collection de Gambs, which specializes in nudes and erotic photography. Also premiering is the series Les Confessions by New York-based photographer Laurent Elie Badessi, who has researched the city’s BDSM scene in depth.

In conjunction with the exhibition, a photo competition will be held on the subject of eroticism. The works of the three competition winners will be exhibited.

EROS & PHOTOGRAPHY
Duration: 16 October 2020 – 23 January 2021
Location: CHAUSSEE 36 – Chausseestraße 36, 10115 Berlin, Germany