Donata Wenders and Wim Wenders - Two-Person Exhibition Presenting Photographic Works in Dialogue

Wim Wenders Woman in the Window, Los Angeles, USA 1999 from the exhibition: Two Pairs of Eyes. Photographs by Donata and Wim Wenders Ernst Leitz Museum, Wetzlar 2026

Leica Camera AG (Leica Camera AG, headquartered in Wetzlar, Germany, hereinafter Leica) will present a two-person exhibition at the Ernst Leitz Museum in Wetzlar, Germany, featuring a curated dialogue between the photographic works of Donata Wenders and Wim Wenders. Donata and Wim have fundamentally different ways of seeing the world. By displaying their works simultaneously, this exhibition offers new perspectives on photography, perception, and storytelling.

The exhibition will include many well-known past photographs and each artist's representative works. It will also feature relatively recent photographs taken over the last few years. Additionally, a specially conducted interview for the exhibition provides deep insights into the artists' creative methods and thinking processes.

Wim Wenders In Sydney, Australia 1984 from the exhibition: Two Pairs of Eyes. Photographs by Donata and Wim Wenders Ernst Leitz Museum, Wetzlar 2026

Wim Wenders is a world-renowned German film director. He has produced numerous masterpieces in film history and boasts a wealth of awards. A key feature of his works is that the setting of the story always plays a crucial role, as seen in 'Paris, Texas' (1984), 'Wings of Desire' (1987), 'Buena Vista Social Club' (1999), and 'Perfect Days' (2023).

Alongside filmmaking, he has also been passionate about photography, creating distinctive works. Wim describes himself as 'first a traveler, then a filmmaker or photographer.' True to his words, many of his photographs were taken during travels or on film locations. His subjects are often landscapes and architecture, using a clear and colorful visual language to impressively depict details and surprise the viewer. People rarely appear, but traces that tell of their existence and lives are visible.

Wim Wenders Streetcorner in Butte, Montana, USA 2003 from the exhibition: Two Pairs of Eyes. Photographs by Donata and Wim Wenders Ernst Leitz Museum, Wetzlar 2026

Donata Wenders' photographs reveal a different perspective on the world compared to Wim. Most of her works are monochrome and focus on people.

Her visual language is minimalist, composed of elements such as light and shadow, sharpness, and dynamic gestures. She utilizes abstraction and blur to depict people as ghostly, fantasy-like figures. Contemporary celebrities such as Pina Bausch (German choreographer and director) and Paul Auster (American novelist and poet) often appear as subjects.

In her photo installations, experimental techniques such as cross-fades, double exposures, and long exposures are used.

Donata Wenders News in Warsaw, Poland 2006 from the exhibition: Two Pairs of Eyes. Photographs by Donata and Wim Wenders Ernst Leitz Museum, Wetzlar 2026

Donata Wenders The Bridge, Hangzhou, China 2024 from the exhibition: Two Pairs of Eyes. Photographs by Donata and Wim Wenders Ernst Leitz Museum, Wetzlar 2026

Both perspectives are full of love for the world and an interest in photography that goes beyond mere documentation.

The dialogue between the photographic works in this exhibition highlights how two distinctly different photographic approaches overlap yet remain distinct: in terms of cinematic perspective versus concentration of photographic elements, expansion versus intimacy, and clarity versus ambiguity.

Donata Wenders

Born in Berlin in 1965. After studying film and theater in Berlin and Stuttgart from 1984 to 1989, she worked for many years as a camera assistant and then as a cinematographer for feature films and documentaries. Since 1995, she has devoted herself to photography. Her works have been published in various newspapers and magazines worldwide and exhibited in Germany and abroad. She has published numerous photobooks, many in collaboration with her husband Wim Wenders, whom she married in 1993. She also serves as a board member of the Wim Wenders Foundation based in Düsseldorf.

Wim Wenders

Born in Düsseldorf in 1945. After studying medicine, philosophy, and sociology, he became fascinated by film, first in Paris and then in Munich in 1976, where he enrolled as one of the first students at the newly founded Munich University of Television and Film. In the 1970s, as an amateur filmmaker, he spearheaded the New German Cinema and has since established himself as one of the leading film directors of contemporary cinema. Alongside filmmaking, photography has been a constant influence from childhood to the present. The origin of his photographic work was the series 'Written in the West,' created in the American West while preparing for the film 'Paris, Texas.' In addition to being a film director and photographer, he also works as a screenwriter and producer. He has won numerous awards for feature films and documentaries, held photography exhibitions worldwide, and published many photobooks and film-related books. He also writes and publishes various books. He lived in the United States for many years from the late 1970s but now continues his activities based in Berlin with his wife Donata.

About Leica Camera AG

Leica Camera AG is a global premium manufacturer of cameras, lenses, and sports optics. As part of its growth strategy, the company has been expanding its business areas in recent years, including entering the mobile imaging (smartphone) sector. It also manufactures high-quality ophthalmic lenses and watches, and with its own projectors, it is entering the home cinema market.