LEICA – Magic Moments

No doubt the Leica M is not just a camera. It is legendary, for many even a collector's item or status symbol. It is much more than a reliable, precise work tool, of course, because every photographer develops an individual relationship with his camera. A Leica is both a discreet observer, lightning-fast accomplice and trusted companion, who not only works perfectly every day, but also creates a magical connection to the greatest photographers and best-known recordings.

Numerous photographs that have burned into the collective consciousness have been created with the Leica M. Important moments of world events as well as the small random encounters of everyday life, portraits of prominent contemporaries as well as of nameless unknowns. In Magic Moments we see Mother Teresa, the Beatles, but also anonymous travelers, children playing and passing people passing by. Every photographer has his or her own pictorial language, and so clearly designed compositions can be discovered in the same way as perspective riddles.

The selection of images from six decades shows unforgettable moments in legendary photographs. A top-class kaleidoscope full of variety and surprises - just like life itself.

The exhibition features works by around 40 photographers, including Henri Cartier-Besson, René Burri, Sebastião Salgado, Martine Franck and Herlinde Koelbl, etc. They all combine the choice of hand tools: the Leica M.

Elliott Erwitt spoke affectionately of his "little girlfriend". An expression of how personal the choice of the "right" camera is, which in most cases remained true to life for many years. As a hand tool, the chosen camera determines the artistic work and is an essential part of the creative process.

Thanks to their relatively small size and the quiet release, the other person can easily overlook the camera. Advantages that the chroniclers of the current affairs appreciate. Time and again photographers succeeded in recognizing the right moment to capture and capture the magical moment with the Leica M.

In the context of this exhibition at Schloss Britz the eye is thrown back to the great successes of analogue photography. At the beginning of 35mm photography is also a Leica. In 1914, Oskar Barnack, an employee of the Optical Works Ernst Leitz in Wetzlar, invented the "Ur-Leica". The exhibition also honors the pioneer of photography. The history of Leica (Leitz Camera) is closely linked to the city of Wetzlar. Today, Leica Camera AG has its headquarters in this city and for 60 years Wetzlar has been a twin city of Berlin-Neukölln.