Photography fans in Berlin have a few options: There is the C/O Berlin foundation, Helmut Newton foundation and some smaller exhibition spaces and galleries. One of them is Camera Work in Kantstraße, whose poster throughout the city you cannot miss: Clean, classy portraits, nude and fashion photography, mostly in black and white. 

As I was starting to watch movie classics as a young adolescent, an exhibition around James Dean caught my attention and made me first visit the Camera Work Gallery. I went with my grandmother who grew up with the movies of this old Hollywood star. Later, I discovered more artists, thinkers and politicians – from yesterday and today. 

Camera Work is a beautifully curated gallery of faces and you never feel awkward about ringing the door of that gallery, hidden in the third courtyard, typical Berlin. Without making a fuss about it, Camera Work simply is good photography. PS: their second gallery is called CWS, Camera Work Contemporary, and is located in Mitte in the former Jewish girls’ school – the building alone is worth the visit to this more recent location and you will discover more radical positions of contemporary photographers there.