f³ – Masterclass Documentary Photography

In the Shadow of Reality: Photographic images have never been called into question as often as in the past 12 months. A new reality is being staged with the help of voice commands (prompts) that goes beyond what photography has always been about. The boundaries between fact and fiction, documentation and visual construct are becoming increasingly blurred, and the question of the veracity of the photographic image is more central than ever before.

In contrast, the f³ – Masterclass Documentary Photography, led by internationally renowned photographer, lecturer and university teacher Peter Bialobrzeski, is aimed at people who want to use photography to talk about phenomena of reality. All photographic subjects, portrait photography, street photography, architecture and landscape photography are welcome.

How do I photograph a feeling? A sound? Silence? The seemingly unphotographable and the possibilities of approaching complex and abstract contexts that become visible in supposed reality form the core of the examination of the medium of photography in the masterclass.

Over 12 teaching days (6 blocks of 2 days each), participants work on a topic of their choice. In close dialog with the instructor and within the group, the photographic approaches are refined both theoretically and practically and transformed into a coherent form. At the end of the course, the participants’ work is presented to a wide audience in an exhibition.

SCOPE: 12 teaching days of 7 hours each, always Saturday/Sunday
DURATION: April 2024 – June 2025
START: April 13/14, 2024
DATES: June 8/9, August 31/September 1, 2024, the other dates will be coordinated with the participants.
PARTICIPANTS: max. 14
FINAL EXHIBITION: in June 2025
LOCATION: f³ – freiraum für fotografie, Waldemarstraße 17, 10179 Berlin
COSTS: € 1,400; VAT will not be charged due to § 4 No. 22 UStG
PAYMENT: € 900 upon registration; € 500 before the second date

APPLICATION: Application deadline is March 15, 2024, 11:59 pm.

Please send the following documents to masterclass@fhochdrei.org:
– CV including documentation of previous projects, exhibitions, books, publications (max. 2 A4 pages)
– Portfolio of approx. 20 photographs
– 5 photos on a possible topic to be worked on as part of the master class. The intention of the planned work (project) should be made clear in a uniform aesthetic realization.

Participants will be selected by March 22, 2024.

LECTURER
Peter Bialobrzeski studied politics and sociology before working as a local reporter in his native city of Wolfsburg. After studying photography in Essen (Folkwangschule) and London (LCP), he initially worked for international magazines before starting to publish his projects in book form at the end of the 1990s. His 30th monographic book was published in fall 2022. In 2002, Bialobrzeski was appointed Professor of Photography at the University of the Arts Bremen, where he taught until 2021. In 2003 and 2010, he won a WorldPressPhoto Award. In 2012, he was honored with the Dr. Erich Salomon Prize of the German Photographic Society. His books have been recognized several times, including the “German Photo Book Award” and the award “One of the most beautiful German books.” His photographs have been shown in solo and group exhibitions on all five continents and can be found in numerous private and public collections. Prof. Peter Bialobrzeski lives in Hamburg and has worked as a freelance artist, photographer, curator and lecturer (Ostkreuzschule, Berlin) since retiring from active university service.