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opening

Casa dei Tre Oci

Friday, April 4, 2025

11 am

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Berggruen Arts & Culture is pleased to present Controfacciata, an exhibition by German photographer Matthias Schaller (born 1965, Dillingen an der Donau), curated by Mario Codognato. Hosted at the Casa dei Tre Oci, the Venice headquarters of the Berggruen Institute Europe, the exhibition brings together 28 photographs from the Controfacciata series (2004 – present), some of which have been created specifically for this occasion. The exhibition, which will be open to the public from April 5 to November 23, 2025, celebrates Schaller’s unique photographic approach to the taxonomic representation of a typically Venetian architectural element, the controfacciata, which characterizes the main floors of the historic palazzi in the city center.

Schaller's images are not merely architectural views; they are poetic compositions that bring together the interior and exterior, transforming the photographed spaces into metaphysical ‘still lives’. The Venetian palazzi reveal interiors that interact with the low light and reflections of the lagoon water, creating a powerful symbolism between the urban landscape and human existence.

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Matthias Schaller graduated in Cultural Anthropology from the Universities of Göttingen, Siena and Hamburg, presenting a thesis on the work of Giorgio Sommer (Frankfurt 1834 - Naples 1914), one of the most successful photographers of the nineteenth century. Amongst other venues, Schaller’s work has been exhibited at the Venice Biennale, the Fondazione Giorgio Cini, the Galleria Internazionale d’Arte Moderna Ca’ Pesaro and the Museo del Vetro in Venice, the Museum of Modern Art and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Rio de Janeiro, the Picasso Museum in Münster, the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, the Wallraf-Richartz Museum in Cologne, the Serralves Museum in Porto, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, SITE in Santa Fe, and the Kunstpalast in Düsseldorf. The artist was awarded the Fellowship - DAAD award in Rome in 1992, the Fellowship - Tokyo Wonder Site, Tokyo in 2008 and the German Photobook Award three times, in 2009, 2010 and 2020. Schaller is currently represented by Sonnabend Gallery (New York City). Matthias Schaller lives in Venice and New York.