Concept
What better way to approach the mythical landscapes of the American Southwest than through a road trip? Here the Wild West is located both geographically and in our imagination. The title WILD WEST inevitably evokes images full of clichés and stereotypes. Today, where the wilderness has been displaced by ‘civilization’, Joachim Hildebrand discovers entirely different ‘landscapes’ than those generally associated with the Wild West. A reassuring blue sky is sometimes the only element in his photographs that stands for the pristine or archetypal environment. The images show a visual rhythm in the multitude of man-made patterns and materials amongst the outdoors. WILD WEST is a mecca of surreal irony that has more to do with suburban development than it does with arid landscape. It can be read as a photo verse that questions the continued human claim to nature’s vastness. Instead of the virgin landscape, Joachim Hildebrand displays a paved paradise that is manufactured by ‘civilization’.Vita
Joachim Hildebrand studied Fine Art Photography at the Istituto
Europeo di Design in Madrid under, among others, Elger Esser, Joan Fontcuberta, and Martin Parr. His works have been exhibited internationally and honored with awards such as the European Architectural Photography Prize. He lives and works in Frankfurt am Main and Berlin.
Solo Exhibitions
2018 Wild West, Alp Galleries/Frankfurt
2014 Prospects, HuanTie-Times-Art Museum/Beijing
2013 Der erzählte Raum, AusstellungsHalle/Frankfurt, Summit Club (with A. Kopp), Projektraum Stilper/Frankfurt , Allemagne mon Amour (with T. Parland), Atelier Voltaire, Voies Off/Arles
2012 Der erzählte Raum, Galerie Schillerstraße/Heidelberg
Group Exhibitions (selection)
2019 Vonovia Award für Fotografie, ZUHAUSE, Kunstmuseum Bochum, Vonovia Award für Fotografie, ZUHAUSE, Kommunale Galerie Berlin
2018 PHotoESPAÑA/Madrid
2017 Menschen, Hoepfner-Stiftung/Karlsruhe
2015 Kolga Tblisi Photo Festival, Stadttraum-Traumstadt, Hoepfner-Stiftung/Karlsruhe
2014 Heimat? Osteuropa in der zeitgenössischen Fotografie, Museum Regensburg, Wurzeln, KV Montez/Frankfurt; Kunstwerk/Köln
2013 Wurzeln, Hamburg+Berlin, architekturbild
2009+2011, Gelsenkirchen
2012 in-between, BildungsTURM-Konstanz
2011 Fragile Helden, KV Montez/Frankfurt, in-between, Deutsches Architekturmuseum/Frankfurt
Grants/Awards
2019 Vonovia Award für Fotografie, SL, Athens Photo Festival, SL
2018 Singapore Int. Ph. Festival - Finalist Photobook, PDN – 8th Exposure Photo Award, Winner, LIFE FRAMER Award, Aesthetica Art Prize, LL, PX3 Prix de la Photographie Paris, HM
2016 ARTslant Prize Showcase Winner
2015 ARTslant Prize Showcase Winner, Kolga Geocell Award finalist, Art Forward Bronze Award
2014 Artist Residency, HuanTie-Times-Art-Museum/Beijing
2011European Architectural Photography Prize
Collections
Bundesstiftung Baukultur/Potsdam, Deutsches Architekturmuseum/Frankfurt, HuanTie-Times-Art- Museum/Beijing