
You’ll have heard of his subjects: David Bowie, Nirvana and the cast of Breaking Bad and Mad Men are amongst those he’s photographed. But Los Angeles-based photographer Frank Ockenfels is a figure who has stayed strictly behind the camera during his three-decade-long career. Now a new exhibition at Fotografiska Berlin gives a glimpse into how some of Ockenfels’ most recognizable works were committed to film. At the center of the show is Ockenfels’ daily journal, which contains collages, sketches and mysterious backward-written text that are combined with iconic photographs – head-on portraits of David Lynch, candid profiles of George Clooney – to create arrangements that are playful and introspective. “Introspective” is in fact the name of the exhibition, which will open on 30.01.2025 with a conversation with Ockenfels on music and photography alongside live music and DJ sets. The following day, Ockenfels will share personal anecdotes with a lecture and guided tour around his works. It’s a fitting introduction to an exhibition that is, by turns, polished and raw – providing insight into Ockenfels’ creative world.
Text: Benji Haughton / Credits: Frank Ockenfels: George Clooney 2005, DB and the Mannequin 2000, 128-129 2019, Courtesy Faheya Klein Gallery
Fotografiska Berlin, Oranienburger Str.54, 10117 Berlin–Mitte; map
Frank Ockenfels: Introspective 30.01.–04.05.2025
@fotografiska.berlin