Thomas Billhardt

From FDJ events in Berlin and chance encounters on the fringes of Alexanderplatz to dispatches from Vietnam and Cuba, Thomas Billhardt’s images capture a world in perpetual motion. For the Berlin photographer, who passed away in 2025, the camera was an instrument of radical curiosity; with a sharp eye, he trained his lens on the vitality pulsing beneath rigid structures, illuminating the unposed moments of everyday life.

Opening on 28 August, the exhibition Die Augen weit offen (“Eyes Wide Open”) at Fotografiska Berlin will showcase a selection of Billhardt’s most important works, highlighting his lasting impact on modern documentary photography.