About

I think of myself as artist as well as eyewitness to the changes of our time that are important to me. I read the landscape and record what I find to be truly remarkable.

Statement

For more than 30 years now, landscape photography constitutes the main topic of my photographic work. I am especially interested in documenting the visible traces of human overpopulation left behind in nature. It’s these traces that make clear how exactly we treat our planet. After thorough research, I usually work a couple of years on one specific topic, to then publish my results in form of a book. The single image is of great importance, but it’s sequences that allow to tell an in-depth story.

Education

  • 1981 - 1986 | Communication Design, specializing in photography, Augsburg (DE)
  • 1986 - 1991| Philosophy and Political Science, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich (DE)

Institution (Work Experience)

  • 2003 - today | Independend Artist, specialised in landscape photography
  • 1988 - 2003 | Self-employed designer, independend publisher

Selected Awards

  • 2017 | Grant, Kulturwerk VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn (DE)
  • 2011 | Grant and artist in residence in Rossinière (CH)
  • 2010 | Photography Prize, Bayerischer Journalisten Verband (DE)
  • 2008 | Lead Award (DE)
  • 2007 | Deutscher Fotobuchpreis (DE)
  • 2006 | Nominated for best book, Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie, Arles (FR)
  • 2006 | Nominated for German Photography Prize (DE)
  • 2005 | Photography Prize, Bayerischer Journalisten Verband (DE)

Selected Exhibitions/Publications

  • 2019 | Ullens Center for Contemporary Art Beijing (CN)
  • 2019 | National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne (AU)
  • 2019 | Festival La Gacilly, Baden (AT)
  • 2019 | Photaumnales 2019, Clermont (FR)
  • 2019 | Galerie f5,6, Munich (DE)
  • 2018 | National Museum of Modern & Contemporary Art of Korea (KR)
  • 2018 | David Winton Bell Gallery, Providence (US)
  • 2018 | Visual Arts Center, UT Austin, Texas (US)
  • 2018 | Frederick Weisman Museum Minneapolis (US)
  • 2018 | The Reykjavík Museum of Photography (IS)
  • 2018 | Wouter van Leeuwen Amsterdam (NL)
  • 2018 | Gallery Huxley Parlour, London (GB)
  • 2017 | David Brower Center, Berkeley, California (US)
  • 2016 | Noorderlicht Arena, Groningen (NL)
  • 2015 | Photoforum Pasquart, Biel (CH)
  • 2015 | McMichael Canadian Art Collection (CA)
  • 2014 | Glenbow Museum, Calgary, Alberta (US)
  • 2014 | El Paso Museum of Art, Texas (US)
  • 2014 | Tufts University Art Gallery, Boston, Massachusetts (US)
  • 2013 | Whatcom Museum, Bellingham, Washington (US)
  • 2012 | NRW-Forum Düsseldorf (DE)
  • 2012 | Museum of Art, Reno, Nevada (US)

Personal Website

https://www.olafottobecker.de

Works

Olaf Otto Becker | Above Zero (2007 - 2008)

Olaf Otto Becker | Above Zero (2007 - 2008)

The series “Above Zero” shows images of meltwater rivers and lakes that are increasingly appearing on the icecap in Greenland due to global warming. Researchers are collecting data on climate change and tourists try to understand the consequences of global warming by visiting the icecap near Kangerlussuaq, Greenland.

Format:

Photo / Video

Olaf Otto Becker | Broken Line (2003 - 2006)

Olaf Otto Becker | Broken Line (2003 - 2006)

In this project, I focus on the coastal landscape and the glaciers of Greenland which have become the victim of significant changes caused by global warming. I covered 4000 km along the west coast of Greenland alone in a rubber raft in order to document these with a large format camera. The location of each photo was determined by precise GPS data.

Format:

Photo / Video

Olaf Otto Becker | Under the Nordic Light – A Journey through Time (1999 - 2019)

Olaf Otto Becker | Under the Nordic Light – A Journey through Time (1999 - 2019)

Iceland 1999-2011. How does a landscape change within a period of 10,15,20 years? I have been observing Areal Iceland with comparative photographs and individual pictures over a period of 20 years already. What has changed, what has stayed the same? What traces become visible in a landscape within a specific period of time if humans intervene, or if they don't? Besides observing changes in landscape, the project also poses questions relating to our subjective perception of time. Our perception of time, which is limited by our senses and judgment, plays an important role in the assessment of impending dangers.

Format:

Photo / Video

Olaf Otto Becker | Reading The Landscape (2008 - 2014)

Olaf Otto Becker | Reading The Landscape (2008 - 2014)

From 2008 till 2014 I worked on a book titled Reading the Landscape, which discusses the worldwide deforestation of primary forests and the current rearrangement of our understanding of nature. Reading the Landscape shows three states of nature in the primary forests of Indonesia and Malaysia: intact nature, ravaged nature, and artificial nature. Altogether, the project documents a fatal ecological and economic process that has progressed beyond the point of reversibility.

Format:

Photo / Video