2023 Plätze & Parks – documentary photography: photo series and photo story, photos by Andreas Muhs

Plätze & Parks, Berlin-Tiergarten and Mitte, 2023-2024, 45 photos, analogue

The development of Potsdamer Platz was perhaps the most important symbol for the reunification of the two halves of the city after the fall of the Wall. In the book "Ein Kunststück Stadt – Der neue Potsdamer Platz" (A Masterpiece City – The New Potsdamer Platz), I documented the creation of the square. The place was meant to regain its historical significance and become as vibrant as it was in pre-war times. 25 years have passed since the opening of the first construction phase. This series is an inventory of the first patina and refurbishment measures. However, the architecture and the consistently eager attempts at revitalization could not fulfill the high expectations. This retrospective and the continuation of already started series create a desire for a complete catalogue raisonné of all my independent photography. For this purpose, I am reviewing all my negative folders, supplementing existing series with new discoveries, and compiling entirely new series that did not seem important enough to me at the time of their creation. Each series will be compiled into a book and printed on demand. For digitization, I am building a device with which I can photograph the negatives. It consists of a negative stage, a diffuser disc, and a flash as a light source, and follows the reverse principle of the classic enlarger: the negative is projected through the macro lens onto the chip of the digital camera. Even though this method of working saves a lot of time, it will take me years to create the catalogue raisonné.

Hasselblad Flexbody + 100 mm + 60 mm