Adam Broomberg (born 1970, Johannesburg, South Africa) and Oliver Chanarin (born
1971, London, UK) are artists living and working between London and Berlin. They are
professors of photography at the Hochschule für bildende Künste (HFBK) in Hamburg
and teach on the MA Photography & Society programme at The Royal Academy of Art
(KABK),The Hague which they co-designed.
Their work considers themes of surveillance, warfare, and institutional authority. Having
stood at the frontlines of war, Broomberg and Chanarin have captured zones of
conflict not as documentarians, but rather as unassuming witnesses. Their images have
resisted the allure of being purely representational, and have instead considered how
a photograph can capture more than just a visual encounter. Tackling politics,religion,
war and history, Broomberg and Chanarin prise open the fault lines associated with such
imagery, creating new responses and pathways towards an understanding of the human
condition.
Together they have had numerous solo exhibitions most recently at The Centre Georges
Pompidou (2018) and the Hasselblad Center (2017). Their participation in international
group shows include the Yokohama Trienniale (2017), Documenta, Kassel (2017), The
British Art Show 8 (2015-2017), Conflict, Time, Photography at Tate Modern (2015);
Shanghai Biennale (2014); Museum of Modern Art, New York (2014); Tate Britain (2014),
and the Gwanju Biennale (2012). Their work is held in major public and private collections
including Pompidou, Tate, MoMA, Yale, Stedelijk, V&A, the Art Gallery of Ontario,
Cleveland Museum of Art, and Baltimore Museum of Art. Major awards include the ICP
Infinity Award (2014) for Holy Bible, and the Deutsche Börse Photography Prize (2013)
for War Primer 2. Broomberg and Chanarin are the winners of the Arles Photo Text
Award 2018 for their paper back edition of War Primer 2, published by MACK.