Rudi Meisel – Vor meinen Augen
Opening: 14 March 2026, 2 - 7 pm // Galerie Bene Taschen, Cologne
Galerie Bene Taschen is pleased to present German photographer Rudi Meisel (born 1949, Wilhelmshaven) with his solo show Vor meinen Augen, welcoming him to the gallery’s roster. The show features works from the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. In color and black-and-white photographs, Meisel captures people in Germany in their everyday lives, becoming an observer with an empathetic and open gaze.
In Autorast 1971, Rudi Meisel photographed scenes at rest areas along the A3 near Cologne. Meisel shows people interrupting their trip to eat, smoke, refuel, read, or play. In these anonymous transit spaces, he captures everyday human needs.
For his work Landsleute 1977–1987: Two Germanys, Meisel traveled through West and East Germany in a ten-year span. He portrayed people of all ages in their daily environments – at a funfair in Duisburg, on coal heaps in Essen, outside nightclubs in East Berlin, and on buses and trains in major cities. At first glance, it is difficult to distinguish between East and West Germany. What becomes visible is the shared human experience that connects people through their actions. This body of work forms an extensive photojournalistic archive documenting divided Germany. In 2015, the series was presented in a solo exhibition at C/O Berlin, accompanied by the publication of the book with the same title.
Rudi Meisel studied photography under Otto Steinert at the Folkwang School in Essen (now Folkwang University of the Arts). Since 1971, he worked on his own projects and commissions for renowned weekly and monthly magazines. In 1975, Meisel co-founded the photographers’ group VISUM in Essen with André Gelpke and Gerd Ludwig. From 1982 to 1991, he collaborated on magazine projects with Otl Aicher; from 1995 to 1999, he was part of Norman Foster’s team in Berlin for the reconstruction of the Reichstag.
Rudi Meisel has received numerous awards for his work, including the Photokina Obelisk, the Kodak Photo Book Prize, and the Lotto Brandenburg Cultural Award. His photographs have been exhibited in institutions such as the German Historical Museum in Berlin, the Deichtorhallen in Hamburg, the Dieselkraftwerk Cottbus, as well as in Goethe-Institutes, the House of History in Bonn, the Museum Folkwang in Essen, and the Ruhr Museum in Essen. The complete works of Rudi Meisel will be preserved by the Deutsche Fotothek in Dresden. Meisel currently lives in Berlin.
