On his journey through South America, Frank Gaudlitz (*1958 in Vetschau, Germany) followed an important historical route in his attempt to get as close as possible to photographing sites that were important to the research expedition undertaken by Alexander von Humboldt. Without knowing it at first, in 1801 Humboldt traveled twelve hundred kilometers across the Andes along the Incan Ruta del Sol. Starting at the Rio Mayo in Columbia, then crossing Ecuador with its breathtaking volcanoes Cotopaxi and Chimborazo, and approaching the north Peruvian city of Trujillo, Gaudlitz produced stunning photos of sites along this historical route. Besides the black-and-white images of landscapes, with their roads, rivers, and small villages, Gaudlitz also took portraits of the people in these regions, presenting a multifaceted image of society—from the indigenous people in their simple huts and houses to the wealthy elite in Quito, Ecuador’s capital.
 
Exhibition schedule: Centro Cultural Biblioteca Julio Mario Santo Domimgo, Bogota, June 11–26, 2011 | Centro de Arte Contemporáneo de Quito, September 2011 | Lima, opening November 2011Frank Gaudlitz (*1958 in Vetschau) lives and works in Potsdam. Studied photography under Arno Fischer from 1987 to 1991 at the Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst in Leipzig. Recipient of many national and international cultural grants. His works can be found in important collections of photography in Germany. Numerous solo shows in Germany and abroad.