Of Flamingos stuck at the Docks

The publication of my article “When Carbon Copies fade” on 10th March 2020 has led to a number of investigations regarding the questioned work by the photographer Maximilian Mann. As some of these investigations by institutional actors of the industry go into a decisive phase, Mann’s collective Docks has published an undated text titled “When plagiarism accusations fade”. It aggressively addresses my research and writing, and was brought to my attention by the evening of 6th April 2020. Docks collective’s undated text has a speculative nature and presents the unnamed author’s assumptions as facts upon which it aggressively concludes. It …

Off Flamingos – a rebuttal

Upon the publication of the article “When Carbon Copies fade” on this blog, Maximilian Mann, the photographer whose project is questioned there, provided a statement which was published in the previous posting. That followed quickly, but remains unsatisfactory and unconvincing. A rebuttal by Kaveh Rostamkhani.

Statement by the “Fading Flamingos” photographer

The publication of the article “When Carbon Copies fade” on this blog has sparked many discussions in the photojournalism and documentary photography community. Maximilian Mann, the photographer whose work has been discussed in that article, has provided this statement along with publishing a large edit of the questioned project “Fading Flamingos” on his website. The environmental disaster at Lake Urmia in Iran is a topic of global interest. Due to the scale and urgency of this issue, which is closely linked to climate change and agricultural practices, many scientists, documentary filmmakers and photographers, national and international, have set out in …

When Carbon Copies fade

There was something uncannily familiar about a series among the recently announced nominees of the 2020 World Press Photo foundation’s annual industry flagship photo contest. Nominated in the environment category, “Fading Flamingos” of the German photographer Maximilian Mann is a set of carefully framed images with a brilliant aesthetic quality and a pastel hue addressing the issue of Lake Urmia. Browsing through it, not just the subject, but down to individual photographs it felt like a déjà vu. It wasn’t to get hold of, until a couple of days later the Iranian photographer Solmaz Daryani came up and shared her concerns …

Bildgeschichtliche Verantwortung im NSU-Prozess

München, 5.12.2017. Ein oktogonal geschnittener Saal im Münchner Strafjustizzentrum: es ist der 394. Hauptverhandlungstag des NSU-Prozesses. An jedem ersten und siebten Verhandlungstag im Kalendermonat dürfen vor Verhandlungsbeginn Aufnahmen gemacht werden. Eine kleine Gruppe Fotografen und ein Kamerateam des ZDF befinden sich bereits im Saal, als die Angeklagten hineingeführt werden und vor dem Verhandlungsbeginn circa fünf Minuten lang Bilder gemacht werden dürfen. Obwohl heute Anwält_innen der Nebenklage ihre Plädoyers verlesen – nicht gerade unwichtig für einen Prozess -, sind die Fotografen auf Beate Zschäpe fixiert, die sich nach dem Betreten des Saals ihrem Vertrauensverteidiger Matthias Grasel zuwendet, sodass von der plexiverglasten …

Herr Schulz, Frau Merkel and the tiny state of Saarland

On Sunday, 26-March-2017, Saarland, Germany’s smallest state inhabited by only a million people elected their state parliament. Given the national elections scheduled for coming September, the regional elections prior to them are interpreted as important indicators. The regional election campaigns in the country’s province are joined by chancellery candidates of both major parties CDU and SPD fighting for the votes of the people and the tiny state of Saarland has set off the election season.

Of smoking Women in Iran and shaping Orientalist perceptions

There has been a controversy within the photojournalism industry regarding an award winning story at the World Press Photo 2017 where the recognized photographer has been accused of unethical behaviour in regard of the profession’s standards and specifically of having disguised fiction photography as documentary. In parts my project Iran: Generation Post-Revolution has also been addressed. In my piece “On the Controversy of World Press Photo 2017” on Medium blog, I have compiled relevant positions and voices from industry professionals regarding the issue in a timeline, not at last because I feel transparency regarding my own work and practices but …

Silent Night

Berlin’s atmosphere following the lorry attack On Monday evening, 19th December 2016, a lorry drove into the Christmas market at Breitscheidplatz in Berlin. The attack killed 12 people and injured 45. The day after, whilst it yet had not been confirmed whether it has been a terror attack or not, a tense “atmosfear” had already been established at the site, where silence dominated. The Christmas market had stayed closed. Top politicians paid tribute to the victims in a ceremonial act, and the area was heavily guarded by heavy-armed police forces. Media and TV broadcasters from all over the world had …

Alles Gute Deutschland – Ein Protokoll

Am 7.11.2015, organisierte die Partei “Alternative für Deutschland” einen Aufmarsch in Berlin um gegen die Asylpolitik der deutschen Regierung zu protestieren. Unter dem Titel “Asyl braucht Grenzen – Rote Karte für Merkel” demonstrierten circa 3000 Menschen und zogen durch Berlin und skandierten rechtskonservative Parolen. Nachfolgend meine Fotostrecke zu diesem Tag, sowie ein Protokoll, das die herrschenden Arbeitsbedingungen und Stimmung beschreibt. Gleich zu Beginn des Aufmarschs werde ich von einem Ordner der Partei mit den Worten “Na, Taliban?” begrüßt. Während des polizeilich gesicherten Demozugs mitten durch Berlin, wurde ich von Demonstrierenden in Ausübung meiner Arbeit mehrfach bedrängt, behindert und beleidigt. Sätze …

Vom Bildanbieter zur Datenkrake?

Der größte Bildanbieter weltweit, Getty Images gibt einen großen Teil aus seinem Archivbestand zur freien Online-Nutzung frei. Dieser hochkontrovers diskutierte Schritt sollte eigentlich keine Überraschung sein. Der nachfolgende Artikel von mir ist in geänderter Fassung in der Tageszeitung (taz) vom 11.03.2014 erschienen. Das eingeblendete Foto habe ich 2009 für die Agentur AFP aufgenommen. Es gehört zu den derzeit 35 Millionen Fotos aus den Archivbeständen von Getty Images, die nun unter Verwendung dieses Players frei zugänglich sind. „Wenn es um das Urheberrecht geht, dann hat Deutschland irgendwo was von Nordkorea an sich.“ kommentierte ein Facebook-Nutzer zu einem kleinen Bilderrechtstreit letzten Dezember. …