A photography exhibition featuring 30 years of local history through the lens of three newspaper photographers has shattered attendance records at the Hamm Artists' Association (hkb) studio in Germany. The exhibition "City Time Stories" drew several hundred visitors to its opening on Saturday, August 16, making it the most well-attended event in the venue's history.
"I've experienced many exhibition openings at our hkb studio, but we've never had so many visitors," said Ina Jenzelweski, the new chairwoman of the Hamm Artists' Association, expressing her amazement at the massive turnout. The exhibition showcases 120 press photographs taken over three decades by WA newspaper photographers Andreas Rother, Reiner Mroß, and Robert Szkudlarek, capturing significant moments in the city's recent history.
Christian Gerstenberger, editor-in-chief of the WA newspaper, delivered the opening remarks with characteristic humor. "When photographers start making art, it always makes me nervous," he joked. "When they start holding the camera at an angle for a picture, I get calls from readers the next day asking whether our photographers can't even hold a camera straight. I was told that Andreas Rother once had a diagonal phase," the editor added with a smile.
According to Gerstenberger, Robert Szkudlarek, described as the most artistic of the three photographers and a veteran of several previous exhibitions in Hamm, initiated the collaborative project and convinced his colleagues to participate. The result proved absolutely worth seeing, as visitors unanimously agreed, particularly because it wasn't a traditional art exhibition but rather a showcase of authentic press photography documenting local life.
The exhibition succeeded in creating exactly the atmosphere the photographers had hoped for, with visitors engaging in animated conversations while viewing the photographs and reminiscing about shared memories. "Do you remember" became the most frequently heard phrase throughout the afternoon as people recognized familiar faces, places, and events from their community's past.
One photograph generated more discussion than any other: an image of a woman in a red bikini standing in an excavator bucket next to then-mayor Thomas Hunsteger-Petermann. "That wasn't my idea," Hunsteger-Petermann quickly clarified, emphasizing that he would not approve such a photo today. Dr. Alexander Tillmann, who served as head of corporate communications for the municipal utilities at the time, recalled the circumstances behind the controversial image.
The photograph was taken during the groundbreaking ceremony for the Maximare aquatic center. Dieter Vatheuer, one of the facility's managing directors at the time, wanted to create a spectacular effect for the press photo and "conjured up the lady," according to Tillmann. "She arrived in a bathrobe, but when she dropped it, everyone's facial expressions went awry," he remembered with amusement.
Other photographs sparked equally vivid memories among attendees. Tillmann, who later became managing director of the Central Halls, explained while looking at an image from the cattle hall filled with numerous bulls that the Central Halls were originally built as a central breeding cattle auction hall. Previously, cattle had been auctioned on the parade ground, he noted.
Ulrike Wäsche, who served as mayor of Hamm from 2004 to 2010, appears in one photograph lying down and aiming with a rifle. "I always had to fire the ceremonial shot at shooting festivals, and I enjoyed doing it," Wäsche explained. Apparently, she was quite accurate with her aim, frequently hitting insignia and passing them on to delighted children as souvenirs.
Werner Reumke, longtime chairman of the Martin Luther Quarter support association, is pictured surrounded by cinema organs. The association received 23 organs as a gift from a cinema organ collector and established their own organ museum. "That was always the highlight during tours of the quarter," Reumke recalled fondly.
These were just four examples among the 120 photographs on display. The exhibition features prominent politicians including Angela Merkel and Joschka Fischer, sports stars like Erik Zabel and Horst Hrubesch in action in Hamm, as well as the Hindu temple priest, local handball and water polo players, and countless other moments from the city's history that awakened memories among both the photographed subjects and other viewers.
Robert Szkudlarek has previously organized several exhibitions in Hamm, including the show "tRaum der WeisSheit" featuring paper art in collaboration with Grzyna Maniecka and Rüdiger Brand at the City Hall Gallery. The current exhibition remains open for public viewing on Saturdays from 2 to 5 PM and Sundays from 11 AM to 5 PM, with free admission. The closing ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, September 14, beginning at 3 PM.
The overwhelming success of the exhibition demonstrates the powerful connection between documentary photography and community memory, proving that sometimes the most compelling art emerges not from conceptual galleries but from the authentic documentation of daily life and shared experiences.
