In 2016 the analogueNow! – Festival for Analogue Photography took place for the second time. From May 6th until May 14th everything inside the halls of the shipping company Ullrich revolved around contemporary analogue photography and its many forms of use. The fact, that we are not alone with our passion for this special photographic art-form, was reflected by the number of visitors: around a thousand visitors found their way to Lichtenberg, to stroll through the exhibition, to try out the workshops, or just hang out and look through magazines and talk to fellow analogue photo nerds.
Main group exhibition
How varied and experimental analogue photography can be was illustrated by two exhibitions: Eleven artists presented their works in the group exhibition on the subject of Manipulation. Eye catchers were definitely Ute Lindner`s Cyanotype (a special noble printing process), which impressed us with 12 by 6 meters of brilliant blue, or Georgia Krawiecs stereoscopes hanging from the ceiling.
The photobookNOW! exhibition included a wide selection of innovative photo books. The current trend towards creating and publishing one’s own photo book was also addressed in the Fotobuch.Postdigital? panel – the participants exchanged views on the current situation and spoke about personal experiences.
Trends, Trends, Trends
Further panel discussions on the trends of analogue (Retromania) and the analogue scene in Europe (Analogue Photography International), as well as presentations on photo-forensics (Prof. Dr. Dirk Labbu-de, University of Applied Sciences Mittweida) and the archiving of analogue photos (Was weg ist weg, weg! – Andreas Kesberger, Fotopioniere), dealt with various aspects of analogue photography.
Apart from the theory, visitors were also offered practical hands-on instructions: a series of expert and basic workshops offered both, interested beginners, as well as darkroom professionals, the opportunity to give analogue photography a try, or to experiment with new techniques and obtain expert tips. The sunny May weather was the ideal support for creating own analogue pieces of art – in addition to photographs, films were shot, developed and later screened at the Super8 Film Evening.
Feedback and exchange
Photographers were given the opportunity to have their work reviewed by experts at the Portfolio Review. The photo editing alumni of the Ostkreuzschule für Fotografie gave useful tips to the participants on how to continue or extend their work. Beyond the scope of the program, visitors also had the chance to chat with like-minded people at the festival or obtain information from more experienced photographers. The best opportunity to make contacts was offered by the network brunch, where industry-relevant companies were able to present themselves and their products.
Beyond the main program, the festival rooms also invited visitors to stroll around, get entertained and relax. The reading lounge as well as the book table attracted visitors to browse through professional magazines, reading material and photo books. Slide film karaoke and lots of musical entertainment rounded off the supporting program.
Participants in 2016:
The exhibition Manipulation with Katharina Ira Allenberg, Melanie King, Georgia Krawiec, Ute Lindner, Josef Maaß, Harald Mair-Böck, Micha Otto, Jose Romussi, René Schäffer, Akiyasu Shimizu, Paul Stephani, Regina Stiegeler
The exhibition photobookNow! with Nico Baumgarten, Julia Borissova, Elena Capra, Nicoló Degiorgis, Jonas Feige, Kirill Golovchenko, Aras Gökten, Dagmar Kolatschny, Birgit Krause, Nico Krebs und Tayo Onorato, Andreas Krufczik, Calin Kruse, Sara-Lena Maierhofer, Katarzyna Mazur, Regine Petersen, Florian Reischauer, Kamil Sobolewski, Mariya Ustymenko, Sarah Walzer
Fotobuch.Postdigital? with Thomas Gust (Bildband Berlin), Calin Kruse (dienacht), Sara-Lena Maierhofer (Fotografin / Fotobuch Dear Clark)
Retromania with Norbert Wiesneth (PhotoWerkBerlin), Prof. Dr. Susanne Holschbach(Universität der Künste / Neue Schule für Fotografie), Dr. Enno Kaufhold (Ostkreuzschule für Fotografie), Henning Serger (Photoklassik), Peter Boesch (The Impossible Project)
Analogue Photography International with Melanie Kathryn King (Alternative Photography Collective), Brittonie Fletcher (Alternative Photography Scotland / ActinicFestival), Emil Kindlein (Analogmania Festival), Clemens Hegger and Tom Eric Schmidt (fineartforum e.V.)