5Q2 - Daniel Blochwitz
Daniel Blochwitz is a Swiss-based photography specialist, working foremost as curator, but also as author, lecturer and advisor. He has organized a number of well-received solo and group exhibitions in museums, galleries, festivals and off-spaces. Previously, he has worked for prominent contemporary art and photography galleries in New York and Zurich for more than a decade. Blochwitz holds a Master’s degree in Photography from the University of Florida and has attended the postgraduate Independent Study Program at the Whitney Museum in New York.
Foto: Daniel Blochwitz, (c) Ulrich Wüst, 2020
What are the challenges of exhibiting photography?
There is no short answer for this question, not least because the medium encompasses such diverse formats, constantly evolving technologies, as well as widely differing views on what actually constitutes photography’s artistic essence, its cultural functions, and its theoretical foundations. Practitioners and curators hail from all corners of the photographic field, each bringing their own preconceived notions to the medium, which may result in specific foci and/or pitfalls when translated into an exhibition space.
Carte Blanche – which exhibition would you realise and why?
Unfortunately, as an independent curator, one often has far more exhibition ideas on file or tucked away in drawers than can realistically be implemented. Many of these are personal favorites—projects close to my heart and aligned with my interests. But one exhibition I would love to realize is a two-person show presenting the work of Lee Miller alongside Martha Rosler’s. There are also several ideas for thematic exhibitions that are particularly important to me, though they may have outgrown a manageable scale over the years.
Which concepts would you like to see more often when exhibiting photography and why?
I would love to see more exhibitions that risk being deemed controversial for presenting what goes decidedly against the grain. Forced to finally act, museums have often mistaken necessary corrections as a trend that simply dumps out the old and brings in the new. But an open and diverse photo exhibition scene is not, when every institution simultaneously programs the same thing – one way or another. Presenting photographic positions horizontally instead, meaning along an extended range of what has been produced at any given moment in its history and across the globe, would open up room to be truly inclusive, heterogeneous and radical.
Which past, current or upcoming exhibition inspires or (has inspired) you?
I have been impressed repeatedly by ideas and exhibitions put forward and implemented by David Campany or the late Okwui Enzwor, but also for example the wonderful Dorothea Lange show “Politics of Seeing” at London’s Barbican Centre. I like shows that are generous and engaged with the world. Generally, I feel most inspired when exhibitions let the art work ‘do the talking’. Nowadays, however, scenography and didactics have become almost obtrusive and often vie for more than a mere supporting role in an exhibition.
What criteria must/should be met in order to have a „good“ exhibition?
Exhibition makers ought to consider their artists and visitors front and center. But instead, even I find myself frequently confronted with an almost insurmountable threshold of pre-required knowledge that furthers confusion and frustration rather than understanding and appreciation. It seems that curators trained in specific academic programs often have peer review in mind when implementing an exhibition, rather than their general audience. This makes me wonder about perpetuated bourgeois art world traditions, but also patronizing “counter measures”, like simple language and certain digital gimmicks.
