Photographic works 1980 - 1989
Based on his studies of photography and subsequently experimental painting, Klaus Elle developed an investigative approach to photography at a very early stage, thereby developing a cross-genre working method. His photo installations and body-related works challenged the expectations of the traditional image of photography at the time, not least because of their expressive visual language, which made use of cross-fades, multiple exposures, and overpainting.
Image gallery
Klaus Elle, aus der Serie: „Erleuchtungen“, 1986-1988, Silbergelatineabzug, getont, 50 x 60 cm
After reprisals by the GDR state apparatus, surveillance by the Stasi, and the closure of exhibitions, he moved with his family to Hamburg in 1988.
The exhibition presents Klaus Elle's early work for the first time and places it in the art-historical context of photographic positions of his generation in the GDR. In his series of works created between 1982 and 1989, Elle intensively explores central themes and questions such as identity, memory, and self-questioning. His early painted-over “self-portraits” (1982/1984) reflect the search for one's own self and its relationship to the world.
With “Erleuchtungen” (Enlightenments, 1982-1989), Elle attempts to visualize the complex connection between space, time, experience, and memory. In the three-part work “Foto-Bio-Grafik” (1986-1987), hand-annotated photographs connect her own biography with that of her family in their historical context and formulate a personal reflection on origin and history.
The “Weihnachtstagebuch” (Christmas Diary, 1987) documents thoughtful reflections and feelings about Christmas, the last holiday spent together with the family before their impending departure for West Germany. The portfolio “Meine Sprache der Fotografie” (My Language of Photography, 1980-1985), on the other hand, represents the artist's media-reflective examination and highlights the technical, media, and philosophical aspects of photography in the form of an individual grammar of photography.
Klaus Elle was born in Leipzig in 1954. After an apprenticeship as an offset retoucher, he studied photography with Joachim Jansong at the Academy of Visual Arts in Leipzig from 1976 and completed a master's degree in experimental painting with Heinz Wagner and Hartwig Ebersbach there from 1981 to 1983. Klaus Elle lives and works in Hamburg.
Curator of the exhibition: Franziska Schmidt
- Exhibition period: 03.09. to 26.10.2025
Opening hours
Tuesday to Friday
12:00 to 20:00
Saturday and Sunday
14:00 to 20:00
Events
- Thursday, 25.09.2025, 19:00
- Lecture: “The Artist as Moderator of Complex Systems – Fieldwork in the Arenas of Social Change” – Lecture by Klaus Elle
- Wednesday, 15.10.2025, 18:00
- Guided tour: Curator Franziska Schmidt and artist Klaus Elle guide visitors through the exhibition. – As part of the Berlin Municipal Galleries Action Week.
- Thursday, 16.10.2025, 19:00
- Artist talk: Christoph Tannert, art historian, in conversation with Klaus Elle – As part of the Berlin Municipal Galleries Action Week.
- Sunday, 26.10.2025, 17:00
- Finissage: “The Karmic Theater or the Construction of My Ego – Portrait Revisions from 40 Years” – Action and presentation by Klaus Elle
Location: Galerie Pankow
Breite Straße 8
13187 Berlin
(Events in German Language)
Additional information
Participating artists
Klaus Elle
