Eröffnung: Heidi Specker. DAMENZIMMER HERRENSCHNITT. Eine Hommage an Aenne Biermann

Heidi Specker’s exhibition is the latest installment in her multi-year artistic exploration of the life and work of the Jewish photographer Aenne Biermann (1898–1933). Drawing on public and private collections, the memories of Biermann’s descendants, and historical research into the Biermann family’s flight from persecution, Heidi Specker traces a history shaped by the political upheavals of the 20th century.

Aenne Biermann was a prominent figure in Gera’s urban society—a cosmopolitan city and cultural center of modernism in the 1920s. In just a few years, the self-taught artist became a leading figure in avant-garde photography. She wore her hair short, in a “men’s cut,” and had her studio designed by one of the most sought-after architects of her time. Her photographs are characterized by the “New Vision”—that is, the intense observation of her immediate surroundings as well as unusual perspectives on people and objects.

Heidi Specker explores the life and work of Aenne Biermann, establishing an artistic and personal connection with her. Loss plays a significant role in this process. Aenne Biermann’s work came to an abrupt halt due to her early death from illness. A large portion of her photographic legacy was looted by the Nazis or is considered lost. In the course of her artistic research, Heidi Specker traveled to Gera, Trieste, and Vienna and made contact with Aenne Biermann’s grandchildren. Through juxtapositions, she reimagines the photographer’s themes and compositions, appropriates them, and translates them into the present. Two video works document key stages of her search for clues: In*Amnesia Gera*, Heidi Specker contrasts Gera’s once cosmopolitan urban life with the marches of right-wing groups today. In*Vienna*,she explores the significance of material legacies for memory. Together with the design duo BLESS, she has developed a specific exhibition architecture and a limited edition inspired by the historical furnishings of Aenne Biermann’s “Damenzimmer.”

With works by
Heidi Specker and Aenne Biermann

Curator
Franciska Zólyom

Curatorial Assistant
Hanar Hupka

Display
BLESS

Graphic Design
Müller & Wesse (Stephan Müller)