Michael Wesely. Visual archaeologies 1943–2022

With his long exposures, Michael Wesely has focused his attention on the problem of temporality in photography in conscious contrast to the notion of the perfect moment. Movements of individual motifs during the exposure develop into cloud-like fields, which combine with the crisp contours of his immobile subjects to form compositions. Alongside people and plants, Michael Wesely is particularly interested in the transformation of places, in regards to their historical relevance as well. His cameras have accompanied construction projects at Potsdamer Platz (1997-99), the demolition of the Palast der Republik (2006-08) or the (re)construction of the Humboldt Forum (2013–20). A new aspect is his journey into the past, where he dedicates himself to an artistic search for traces of the Max Liebermann House right next to the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin.