TOGETHER - Photographs by Ute Mahler and Werner Mahler

TOGETHER in Hof: Two major voices of German photography in dialogue

The Freiheitshalle Hof presents TOGETHER, a concentrated art experience: 50 large-format works by Ute Mahler and Werner Mahler unfold an intense exhibition atmosphere between fashion, portrait, landscape, and contemporary history. The humanistic imagery of the two co-founders of OSTKREUZ has shaped German documentary photography for decades – now it becomes an experiential living consideration in Hof.

A Canon of Perspectives: Curated Work Groups as Narrative Space

In the foyer ensemble of the Freiheitshalle, four work groups condense into a multi-voiced narrative: Where the World Ended shows the former inner-German border as today's cultural landscape – an interplay of wild nature and sparse traces of history. Monalisas of the Suburbs portrays young women on the fringes of European cities with the sharpened calm of a plate camera. The Strange Days explores atmospheric ambivalences in Brandenburg and Mecklenburg landscapes. Fashion FAZ Magazine, finally, connects fashion photography and commentary, an artistic continuation of the attitude that was already visible in the GDR icon Sibylle.

Aesthetic Experience: Light, Material, Space

Dull shimmering surfaces, fine gray values, and precisely placed light create a quiet intensity. The large-format prints open the view to both distance and closeness: lines of street edges, the dull green of river landscapes, the material elegance of a coat – everything becomes a choreography of form, tone value, and texture. The spatial arrangement rhythmizes the work groups and invites a shift between overview and detail study.

Art Historical Classification and Context

Ute and Werner Mahler are among the defining photographers of the East whose work translated the era of the late GDR as well as the transformation years after 1990 into artistic images. As co-founders of OSTKREUZ and initiators of the Ostkreuzschule, they shaped an entire generation. Their awards, including the Culture Prize of the German Society for Photography, underscore the authority of this work; the stations of major institutions demonstrate its relevance in the canon of contemporary photography.

Education, Mediation, Cinema

Accompanying a series of special tours deepens the work analysis and the curatorial perspective. In cooperation with the Central Cinema Hof, film screenings expand the spectrum of observation – from photographic portrait to the ethics of photojournalism. Thus, the exhibition becomes a learning space for schools, groups, and anyone who wishes to experience photography as cultural education.

Conclusion

TOGETHER is more than an exhibition of works – it is an invitation to an intensive aesthetic experience. Those who love colors, shapes, and the quiet energy of photographic compositions will find here a precisely curated encounter with two significant positions of German photography. Visit the exhibition, take your time, and indulge in the luxury of attentive observation.

Official Channels of Ute Mahler and Werner Mahler:

• Instagram: No official profile found
• Facebook: No official profile found
• YouTube: No official profile found
• Website: https://uwmahler.de/

Sources:

• City of Hof – Exhibition TOGETHER
• Freiheitshalle Hof – Accessibility
• DGPh – Together: Ute + Werner Mahler
• DGPh – Culture Prize 2023: Ute and Werner Mahler
• OSTKREUZ – Profile Ute Mahler
• OSTKREUZ – Profile Werner Mahler
• Ute Mahler & Werner Mahler – Official Website
• City of Hof – New Exhibition in the Freiheitshalle