Hannes Kilian (1909–1999) enjoys a worldwide reputation as a photographer of great ballets. With his unusual sensitivity for the phenomenon of motion, he knew exactly how to lend movement to a still photograph. This was also the best possible foundation for a successful career as a photojournalist.
Kilian worked for some of the most important newspapers and magazines, including Time, the Picture Post, Spiegel, and stern, while publishing numerous books as well. His body of work, presented here in full, includes rarely or never-before-published photographs from the artist’s archives, covering more than half a century of European and German history. Main focal points are his beginnings inItaly and France, the 1937 Paris World Exposition, and Germany during and after World War II: devastating documents of Stuttgart in ruins, images of a divided Berlin, and reconstruction-era photographs—from the currency reform to the end of the so-called Wirtschaftswunder, or “economic miracle.” As a travel photographer, Kilian explored the world long before the Germans became the world champions of international travel.
 
Exhibition schedule: Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin, April 4–June 29, 2009