The exhibition brings together the photographic work of the two sisters Lotte and Ruth Jacobi. Born into a dynasty of photographers, they run the Jacobi photo studio together from 1931, in the middle of west Berlin on Kurfürstendamm, where the avant-garde is at home.

Lotte Jacobi became famous as a representative of “New Photography” as early as the 1920s, while her younger sister Ruth remained largely unknown. For the first time, the photographic work – consisting of portraits, still lifes, reports, photographs and experimental shots – of this fourth generation of a family of photographers, is united in one exhibition. In addition to black-and-white photographs, letters, personal documents, family photos and texts on history allow a deep insight into the world of the sisters.

Lotte Jacobi (1896-1990) took over her father’s studio in 1927 after completing a two-year training course as a photographer at the State Higher Technical School for Photo Technology in Munich. She is already known in the 1920s with her portraits, among others, by Albert Einstein, Käthe Kollwitz, Lotte Lenya or Klaus and Erika Mann.

Ruth Jacobi (1899-1995) was in the shadow of her sister all her life. She received her training at the Photography Institute of the Lette Association in Berlin. Her work includes portraits, still lifes, reportage and travel photographs as well as plant and experimental photographs. To this day, the oeuvre of Ruth Jacobi has been little researched.

In addition to the black and white photographs, numerous letters, personal documents and photos of the Jacobi family from their time in West Prussia, Berlin and the USA are shown. This creates a personal picture of one of the oldest families of photographers in pre-war Germany.

The exhibitions ‘Echoes of War’ and ‘NEW ERA?’ by Freundeskreis Willy-Brandt-Haus run in parallel until Jan 10, 2021.

Framework program

Online-Workshops
(Held in German)
Workshopleitung: Anke Göhring, Künstlerin und Kunstvermittlerin.
Parallel zur Ausstellung bietet der Freundeskreis Willy-Brandt-Haus nun vertiefende Online-Workshops an. Fokus der Workshops ist die Vielfalt und Unterschiedlichkeit von Frauen, die fotografiert haben und fotografieren – von ihren Lebenswegen, ihren Blicken und ihren Bildern.
Der Workshop setzt sich mit den Frauenbildern und -rollen damals und heute auseinander und beleuchtet die Situation der Frauen in Europa und Amerika. Die Reise beginnt bei Anna Atkins, der Frage, was hinter dem „The Kodak Girl“ steckt, und es wird die deutsche Fernsehserie „Babylon Berlin“ gestreift. Die Teilnehmer*innen sind dazu eingeladen, sich mit den Fotografien von Ruth und Lotte Jacobi intensiver zu beschäftigen und zu einer Annäherung über Lebenswege, Beziehungen und Entscheidungen zu kommen. Ihre Werke werden nicht nur besprochen, sondern auch in Dialog gebracht mit den Fotografien von Lady Clementina Hawarden, Claude Cahun und Gertrude Käsebier.

Diverse Termine im Dez 2020 + Jan 2021, jeweils 13 – 15 Uhr.
Für jeden Termin stehen 15 Plätze zur Verfügung.
Empfohlen ab 16 Jahre – die Teilnahme ist kostenlos.
Unterrichtssprache: Deutsch.
Buchung online unter www.fkwbh.eventbrite.com

In cooperation with:
KuK Monschau, Jüdisches Museum Berlin, University of New Hampshire

Sep 26, 2020 — Jan 10, 2021

Freundeskreis Willy-Brandt-Haus e.V.

Stresemannstraße 28, 10963 Berlin
[District: Kreuzberg | Borough: Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg]

Opening hours: Sat & Sun 10 am – 8 pm.
Closing days in 2020/21: see fkwbh.de

Admission free | Photo ID required | Access only with a time-slot ticket