Fotoatelier am Schönen Berg
21–22 November 2026
Mansteinstr. 16, 10783 Berlin
Opening hours:
Saturday, 12:00 – 18:00
Sunday, 12:00 – 18:00
OUT/SIDE/IN – Taking a seat
This photographic project explores Berlin as a political space of belonging, where identity is negotiated not solely through origin, but through social, cultural and emotional attributions. In a temporary photo studio, visitors are invited to take a seat on a sofa – a place of arrival and positioning. The seating arrangement marks a symbolic boundary: the left-hand side represents those who see themselves as Berliners, the right-hand side those who see themselves as non-Berliners.
This spatial configuration points to Berlin as a city of constant negotiation: who belongs, who is excluded – and who decides? The boundary is deliberately kept simple and highlights that political belonging is often linked to seemingly trivial gestures and self-attributions. After the portrait, participants note down their place of birth and the length of their stay in Berlin. This information serves not as proof, but as a contrast to their chosen self-positioning.
The portraits are presented directly, categorised according to whether the subject is classified as a ‘Berliner’ or a ‘non-Berliner’. This creates a visual cartography of the city that does not depict administrative boundaries, but rather individual positions within a politically and historically charged urban space.
Thilo Seibt was born in Berlin and has lived here for almost his entire life. Carola Thielecke moved here as an adult. The question of self-identification is therefore relevant to the artists in different ways.
The project highlights Berlin as a place where the ‘outside’ is constantly inscribed within the ‘inside’. A sense of belonging emerges as a fluid process that takes shape amidst migration, everyday life and self-image. The boundary is not understood as a division, but as a productive space of possibility in which urban identity is continually reimagined.
Artists taking part: Carola Thielecke, Thilo Seibt
