C/O Berlin will be presenting the exhibition Cortis & Sonderegger . Double Take from March 16 to June 01, 2019. The opening will take place on Friday, March 15, 2019, at 7:00 p.m. at C/O Berlin in the Amerika Haus at Hardenbergstrasse 22–24, 10623 Berlin.

Robert Capa’s falling soldier in the Spanish Civil War; Henri Cartier-Bresson’s image of a man leaping over a puddle at the Gare Saint-Lazare; Nosferatu’s shadow in F. W. Murnau’s silent film classic; the footprint left by the first man on the moon; the World Trade Center going up in flames – we recognize them all, these symbolic scenes and iconic pictures seared into our collective memory. They number among the most significant and most-discussed images in the history of film and photography, constantly referenced and reproduced. These visual icons, associated with well-known personalities and dramatic historical events, are crystallizations of a collective identity and memory. They have the ability not just to write history, but sometimes even to make it.

In their long-term project, Icons, the Swiss artistic duo Jojakim Cortis and Adrian Sonderegger faithfully reconstruct these world-famous images as detailed three-dimensional dioramas – miniature models that are once again captured in a photograph, along with all the artists’ tools, and materials such as cardboard, plaster casts, glue, cotton wool and sand. It is a meticulous bricolage and sculptural achievement for the artists, constantly raising the question: is it real, or is it a substitute?

The shots manage to simultaneously fascinate and bewilder the viewer, but not just because of their perfect, bold stagings of these near-identical images. With a touch of humor, Cortis and Sonderegger also consistently reveal the inner workings of their pictorial illusions by including their studio surroundings in the final photograph.

The artists hence set in motion a fascinating game of confusion and discovery that inspires us to decipher the mysteries of the Making of series, to get to the bottom of each illusion and to expose the tricks our eyes can play on us. In doing so, they make plain that each photograph is ultimately a medial product or construct, and skillfully play with the boundary between photographic truth and manipulation. In a time when the authenticity of pictures, alternative facts and fake news is under constant discussion, Cortis and Sonderegger’s works challenge us to reconsider how true photography really is. But Icons is also an entertaining, ironic reflection on photography as a medium that claims to represent reality but is itself the product of a medial process. Cortis and Sonderegger have made it their artistic mission to sharpen our senses, leading us to question what we see.

The exhibition Cortis & Sonderegger: Double Take is organized by C/O Berlin in cooperation with the Fotostiftung Schweiz. A catalogue by the same name, published by Lars Müller Publishers, Zurich (German) and Thames & Hudson (English), accompanies the exhibition.

Jojakim Cortis (b. 1978 in Aachen, Germany) is a freelance photographer and lecturer. Cortis has lived and worked in Zurich since 2001. In 2006 he completed his studies in photography at the Zurich University of the Arts, where he also began working with Adrian Sonderegger. Since 2009, he has taught there as a technical assistant and lecturer.

Adrian Sonderegger (b. 1980 in Bülach, Switzerland) is a freelance photographer and lecturer. Sonderegger has lived and worked in Zurich since 2001. Together with Jojakim Cortis, he studied photography at the Zurich University of the Arts. From 2007 to 2011, he worked as an assistant to the artist Jules Spinatsch.

Framework program

Guided Tours: every Sat & Sun at 2 & 4 pm (in German), 6 pm (in English)
Details

Tuesday, March 19, 2019, 7 pm
Icons . Guided tour with the artists & Lecture by Gerhard Paul
Language: German
Details

Thursday, March 28, 2019, 7 pm + 7:30 pm
After-Work Tour + Drink
Language: German
Details

Tuesday, April 2, 2019, 7 pm
IMAGE CAPITAL . Lecture-Performance
With Estelle Blaschke and Armin Linke
Moderation Ann-Christin Bertrand, Curator at C/O Berlin
Language: English
Details

Tuesday, April 9, 2019, 6 pm
Curator’s Guided Tour with Ann-Christin Bertrand
Language: German
Details

Thursday, May 23, 2019, 7 pm + 7:30 pm
After-Work Tour + Drink
Language: German
Details

Ascension Day, May 30, 2019
Additional Guided Tours:
2 & 4 pm (German), 6 pm (English)
Details

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Also have a look at the framework program for the simultaneous exhibition at C/O Berlin:
»Boris Mikhailov . Before Sleep / After Drinking«

Mar 16 — June 1, 2019
Opening Reception: Friday, March 15, 7 pm
Framework program: please see above

C/O Berlin Foundation

Amerika Haus, Hardenbergstraße 22-24, 10623 Berlin
[Charlottenburg | Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf]

Opening hours: Daily 11 am – 8 pm

Admission: 10 € / reduced 6 € | Online Ticket