Candida Höfer
Encyclopedia
Candida Höfer is a Cologne, Germany-based photographer and a former student of Bernd and Hilla Becher
. Like other Becher students – Andreas Gursky
, Thomas Ruff
, Thomas Struth
– Höfer's work is known for technical perfection and a strictly Conceptual approach. From 1997 to 2000 she taught as professor at the Hochschule für Gestaltung
, Karlsruhe. Höfer lives and works in Cologne
.
. In 1968, she began working for newspapers as a portrait photographer and, from 1970, as an assistant to Werner Bokelberg. She later attended the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf
from 1973 to 1982, where she studied film under Ole John and, from 1976, photography under Bernd Becher. Along with Thomas Ruff, she was one of the first of Becher’s students to use color, showing her work as slide projections.
Höfer began taking color photographs of interiors of public buildings, such as offices, banks, and waiting rooms, in 1979 while studying in Düsseldorf. Her breakthrough to fame came with a series of photographs showing guest workers in Germany, after which she concentrated on the subjects "Interiors", "Rooms" and "Zoological Gardens". Höfer specialises in large-format photographs of empty interiors and social spaces that capture the "psychology of social architecture". Her photographs are taken from a classic straight-on frontal angle or seek a diagonal in the composition. She tends to shoot each actionless room from an elevated vantage point near one wall so that the far wall is centered within the resulting image. From her earliest creations, she has been interested in representing public spaces such as museums, libraries, national archives, or opera houses devoid of all human presence. Höfer’s imagery has consistently focused on these depopulated interiors since the 1980s. Höfer groups her photographs into series that have institutional themes as well as geographical ones, but the formal similarity among her images is their dominant organizing principle.
In her Zoologische Gärten series (1991), Höfer shifts her focus away from interiors to of zoos in Germany, Spain, England, France, and the Netherlands. Implementing her typically descriptive style, Höfer’s images again seek to deconstruct the role institutions play in defining the viewer’s gaze by documenting animals in their caged environments.
In 2001, for Douze-Twelve, commissioned by the Musée des Beaux-Arts et de la Dentelle in Calais
and later shown at Documenta
11, Höfer photographed all twelve casts of Auguste Rodin
’s The Burghers of Calais in their installations in various museums and sculpture gardens. From 2004 to 2007, she traveled the world to photograph Conceptual artist On Kawara
's iconic Date Paintings in the homes of private collectors.
, Portikus in Frankfurt am Main, the Hamburger Kunsthalle, and the Power Plant in Toronto. She was included by Okwui Enwezor
in Documenta
11 in Kassel in 2002, and she represented Germany at the Venice Biennale
in 2003 together with the late Martin Kippenberger
. The first comprehensive North American survey of her work was shown under the title "Architecture of Absence" at Norton Museum of Art
in 2006. That same year, she had solo exihibitions at Musée du Louvre, Paris, and the Irish Museum of Modern Art
, Dublin.
She is represented by Johnen Galerie in Berlin, Yvon Lambert Gallery
in Paris, Sonnabend Gallery in New York, and Kukje Gallery in Seoul.
Bernd and Hilla Becher
Bernard "Bernd" Becher , and Hilla Becher, née Wobeser , were German artists working as a collaborative duo. They are best known for their extensive series of photographic images, or typologies, of industrial buildings and structures.- Biography :Bernd Becher was born in Siegen...
. Like other Becher students – Andreas Gursky
Andreas Gursky
Andreas Gursky is a German visual artist known for his enormous architecture and landscape color photographs, often employing a high point of view...
, Thomas Ruff
Thomas Ruff
Thomas Ruff is an internationally renowned German photographer who lives and works in Düsseldorf.-Life:...
, Thomas Struth
Thomas Struth
Thomas Struth is a German photographer whose wide-ranging work includes depictions of detailed cityscapes, Asian jungles and family portraits. He is one of Germany's most widely exhibited and collected fine art photographers...
– Höfer's work is known for technical perfection and a strictly Conceptual approach. From 1997 to 2000 she taught as professor at the Hochschule für Gestaltung
Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design
The Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung Karlsruhe is a Germany university founded in 1992 by Professor Heinrich Klotz, who also founded its sister institution, the Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe...
, Karlsruhe. Höfer lives and works in Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
.
Life and Work
Candida Höfer is a daughter of the German journalist Werner HöferWerner Höfer
Werner Höfer was a German journalist. He started his career as a Nazi propagandist, working for the newspaper Das Reich. From 1933 to 1945 he was a member of the Nazi Party....
. In 1968, she began working for newspapers as a portrait photographer and, from 1970, as an assistant to Werner Bokelberg. She later attended the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf
Kunstakademie Düsseldorf
The Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, formerly Staatliche Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, is the Arts Academy of the city of Düsseldorf. It is well known for having produced many famous artists, such as Joseph Beuys, Gerhard Richter, Sigmar Polke, Thomas Demand, and Andreas Gursky...
from 1973 to 1982, where she studied film under Ole John and, from 1976, photography under Bernd Becher. Along with Thomas Ruff, she was one of the first of Becher’s students to use color, showing her work as slide projections.
Höfer began taking color photographs of interiors of public buildings, such as offices, banks, and waiting rooms, in 1979 while studying in Düsseldorf. Her breakthrough to fame came with a series of photographs showing guest workers in Germany, after which she concentrated on the subjects "Interiors", "Rooms" and "Zoological Gardens". Höfer specialises in large-format photographs of empty interiors and social spaces that capture the "psychology of social architecture". Her photographs are taken from a classic straight-on frontal angle or seek a diagonal in the composition. She tends to shoot each actionless room from an elevated vantage point near one wall so that the far wall is centered within the resulting image. From her earliest creations, she has been interested in representing public spaces such as museums, libraries, national archives, or opera houses devoid of all human presence. Höfer’s imagery has consistently focused on these depopulated interiors since the 1980s. Höfer groups her photographs into series that have institutional themes as well as geographical ones, but the formal similarity among her images is their dominant organizing principle.
In her Zoologische Gärten series (1991), Höfer shifts her focus away from interiors to of zoos in Germany, Spain, England, France, and the Netherlands. Implementing her typically descriptive style, Höfer’s images again seek to deconstruct the role institutions play in defining the viewer’s gaze by documenting animals in their caged environments.
In 2001, for Douze-Twelve, commissioned by the Musée des Beaux-Arts et de la Dentelle in Calais
Calais
Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
and later shown at Documenta
Documenta
documenta is an exhibition of modern and contemporary art which takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany. It was founded by artist, teacher and curator Arnold Bode in 1955 as part of the Bundesgartenschau which took place in Kassel at that time...
11, Höfer photographed all twelve casts of Auguste Rodin
Auguste Rodin
François-Auguste-René Rodin , known as Auguste Rodin , was a French sculptor. Although Rodin is generally considered the progenitor of modern sculpture, he did not set out to rebel against the past...
’s The Burghers of Calais in their installations in various museums and sculpture gardens. From 2004 to 2007, she traveled the world to photograph Conceptual artist On Kawara
On Kawara
is a Japanese conceptual artist living in New York City since 1965. He has shown in many solo and group exhibitions, including the Venice Biennale in 1976.-Early life:After graduating from Kariya High School in 1951, Kawara moved to Tokyo...
's iconic Date Paintings in the homes of private collectors.
Major Exhibitions
Höfer’s first solo exhibition was in 1975 at the Konrad Fischer Galerie in Düsseldorf. Since then, Höfer has had solo exhibitions in museums throughout Europe and the United States, including the Kunsthalle BaselKunsthalle Basel
Since opening in 1872, Kunsthalle Basel has examined various positions concerning contemporary art. This renowned exhibition space in the Swiss city of Basel has a very long tradition of supporting avant-garde artists and expanding the accepted boundaries of contemporary art. Contemporary art...
, Portikus in Frankfurt am Main, the Hamburger Kunsthalle, and the Power Plant in Toronto. She was included by Okwui Enwezor
Okwui Enwezor
Okwui Enwezor is an Igbo Nigerian-born American curator, art critic, writer, poet, educator, and specializing in art history. He lives in New York.- Biography :...
in Documenta
Documenta
documenta is an exhibition of modern and contemporary art which takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany. It was founded by artist, teacher and curator Arnold Bode in 1955 as part of the Bundesgartenschau which took place in Kassel at that time...
11 in Kassel in 2002, and she represented Germany at the Venice Biennale
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
in 2003 together with the late Martin Kippenberger
Martin Kippenberger
Martin Kippenberger was a German artist known for his extremely prolific output in a wide range of styles and media as well as his provocative, jocular and hard-drinking public persona....
. The first comprehensive North American survey of her work was shown under the title "Architecture of Absence" at Norton Museum of Art
Norton Museum of Art
The Norton Museum of Art is an art museum located in West Palm Beach, Florida. Its collection includes over 5,000 works, with a concentration in European, American, and Chinese art as well as in contemporary art and photography.-History:...
in 2006. That same year, she had solo exihibitions at Musée du Louvre, Paris, and the Irish Museum of Modern Art
Irish Museum of Modern Art
The Irish Museum of Modern Art also known as IMMA, is Ireland's leading national institution exhibiting and collecting modern and contemporary art. The museum opened in May 1991 and is located in Royal Hospital Kilmainham, a 17th-century building near Heuston Station to the west of Dublin's city...
, Dublin.
She is represented by Johnen Galerie in Berlin, Yvon Lambert Gallery
Yvon Lambert Gallery
Yvon Lambert Gallery is a contemporary art gallery founded by Yvon Lambert in 1966. There are two locations; one in Paris and the second in New York City.-History:...
in Paris, Sonnabend Gallery in New York, and Kukje Gallery in Seoul.
External links
- Candida Höfer: The Louvre (Exhibition, Musée du Louvre, 2006-07)
- ICA, University of Pennsylvania exhibtion (05/2006)
- Candida Höfer at Rena Bransten Gallery
- Spaces: Photographs by Candida Höfer and Thomas Struth at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute,Williamstown, Massachusetts, June 12, 2011 - September 5, 2011