Where to See Bernd and Hilla Becher

Bernd and Hilla Becher had several solo and group exhibitions during their careers. These included solo shows at Galerie Ruth Nohl, Siegen (1963^[2]); Staatliche Kunstakademie, Dusseldorf (1966); Staatliches Museum fur Angewandte Kunst, Munich (1967); Stedelijkvon Abbe-Museum, Eindhoven, and Stadtisches Museum, Monchengladbach (1968); Stadtische Kunsthalle, Dusseldorf (1969); Galerie Konrad Fischer, Dusseldorf, and Moderna Museet, Stockholm (1970); Neue Galerie, Aachen (1971); and Sonnabend Gallery, New York (1972). Group exhibitions featuring their work included Prospect 69, Stadtische Kunsthalle, Dusseldorf (1969); Konzeplion-Conception, Stadtisches Museum, Schloss Morsbroich, Leverkusen (1970); Edinburgh International Festival, Strategy: Get Arts, Demarco Gallery, Edinburgh, and Information, Museum of Modern Art, New York (1970); Prospect 71, Stadtische Kunsthalle, Dusseldorf (1971); 13 Artists Chosen for Documenta, Sonnabend Gallery, New York, and Documenta V, Kassel (1972).

Bernd and Hilla Becher, a husband-and-wife team, began photographing industrial structures in Europe and North America around 1957. They focused on structures such as water towers, blast furnaces, and coal silos. Their work aimed to provide a grammar for understanding and comparing different structures. The Bechers arranged their black-and-white photographs into series based on functional typologies, often displayed in grids. This method revealed structural and material variations within specific types of buildings. The photographs were usually taken from the same angle, with evenly distributed light, and printed in identical sizes. The structures, they said, were "anonymous sculptures". Their work has been linked to obsolescence, as they began documenting structures in the Ruhrgebiet that were being demolished due to the decline of mining. The absence of people in their photographs gives even functioning plants an outmoded appearance. Both Bechers were involved in all aspects of their work, from scouting locations to printing. However, Hilla often handled the laboratory tasks. Bernd taught at the Düsseldorf Art Academy, becoming the first professor of fine art photography at a West German art institution in 1976^[2].

Bernd and Hilla Becher, working collaboratively from 1959^[2], are known for their objective, black-and-white photographs of industrial structures. They travelled across Europe and North America, photographing water towers, blast furnaces, and coal silos. Their work is important for several reasons. First, the Bechers created a visual grammar that allows viewers to compare different structures. They arranged photographs into grids or rows based on functional typologies. This method reveals structural variations within specific types of buildings. The images, often taken from the same angle with even lighting and identical print sizes, emphasise the sculptural qualities of these anonymous structures. Second, their work documents late 19th-century industrial architecture, some of which no longer exists. These images offer a critical reflection on industrial production and its impact on the economy and environment. The Bechers' serial repetition and focus on industrialisation have drawn comparisons to Minimalism. Their objective approach influenced later photographers such as Andreas Gursky and Thomas Struth.

Bernd and Hilla Becher worked almost exclusively in black and white photography. They travelled throughout Europe and North America from 1957 onwards, photographing industrial structures such as water towers, coal silos, and blast furnaces. They used a large bellows camera, a Plaubel Peco, with exposure times between ten seconds and one minute. The Bechers were systematic in their approach; they precisely selected viewpoints, often aiming the lens directly at a corner or the exact centre of a wall. They might shoot one, three, four, six, or eight views of each structure. In some cases, they made thorough documentation of all the structures in a sprawling plant, taking up to six hundred pictures. Both were involved in all aspects of producing the work, including scouting locations, negotiating with owners, setting up cameras, and printing. Hilla handled most of the later laboratory tasks. Their consistent approach to subject matter, viewpoint, and printing gives their work a unified, objective quality.

Bernd and Hilla Becher's objective, serial approach to photography influenced a younger generation of photographers, including Andreas Gursky and Thomas Struth. Their work also found common ground with minimalist artists like Carl Andre and Richard Long, who recognised the artistic merit in their seemingly unartistic style. The Bechers' approach, characterised by uniformity and an aspiration to completeness, can be viewed as an antihumanist successor to August Sander's portraits of the German population. Like Sander, they employed black-and-white images, precise focus, and a consistent presentation. Their focus on industrial structures, presented in grids, revealed shared structural elements and subtle design variations across different periods and locations. This objective and scientific method, combined with themes of repetition and standardisation, paralleled the interests of Minimalist artists and impacted conceptual art. The Bechers were included in many early exhibitions of conceptual art.

Bernd and Hilla Becher cited August Sander as a major influence. Sander, little known in the 1960s, created a project mapping types among the German population. The Bechers owned Sander's 1929 book, *Antlitz der Zeit* (*Face of Our Time*). Similarities exist between the two bodies of work: both comprise uniform black-and-white images, often vertically oriented, cleanly centred, and with even lighting. Other art historians have named Eugène Atget, Karl Blossfeldt, Walker Evans, and Albert Renger-Patzsch as precursors, in addition to lesser-known industrial photographers. Hilla's mother studied photography in Berlin in the 1920s and gave Hilla a camera at age twelve. Hilla gained darkroom equipment from her uncle and interned for architectural photographer Walter Eichgrün, whose studio held an archive of historical photographs. Bernd trained as a decorative painter and studied painting and drawing. He used a camera to collect source material for paintings, documenting industrial structures in graphic illustrations.

Bernd and Hilla Becher are best known for their photographic series of industrial structures. Beginning in 1957, the pair photographed buildings such as water towers, blast furnaces, and coal silos across Europe and North America. These black-and-white images were arranged in grids, categorised by function. The Bechers aimed to create a visual grammar that allowed viewers to compare different structures. They referred to the buildings they photographed as "anonymous sculptures", forms dictated by their function. Their objective approach has been compared to Minimalist art. The Bechers' work gained recognition in the 1970s, with Bernd Becher teaching at Düsseldorf Art Academy from 1976^[2]. Although they collaborated on all aspects of their work, Hilla often handled the darkroom tasks. In 1990, they received an award at the Venice Biennale in the sculpture category, despite working exclusively in photography. One example of their work is *Water Towers*, a 3x3 grid of nine gelatin silver prints from 1980.

Bernd and Hilla Becher are best known for their photographic work documenting industrial structures. They systematically photographed water towers, blast furnaces, and other examples of what they termed "anonymous sculptures" throughout Europe and North America, beginning in the late 1950s. Although photography was their medium, the Bechers received an award for sculpture at the Venice Biennale in 1990^[2]. Their objective approach, serial repetition, and focus on industrialisation have drawn comparisons to Minimalism. The Bechers themselves avoided such categorisation. Minimalist sculptor Carl Andre appreciated their work, finding common ground between their photography and Minimalist art. Their work stood apart from the subjective style popular among German photographers in the 1950s and 1960s. Instead of exploring the "inner psyche", they focused on the external world. The Bechers' methodical approach and typological studies influenced a younger generation of photographers, including Andreas Gursky and Thomas Struth.