Talking Books

With Talking Books, C/O Berlin regularly invites audiences to discover new perspectives on the world of photobooks. As part of the exhibition Julian Rosefeldt . Nothing is Original, Youvalle Levy from the Berlin-based bookshop Bildband and artist Norman Behrendt will be our guests.

In his project Blueprint 2017–20 Behrendt examines how the mass media influenced political debates and democratic processes during the Brexit process. His photographs of Brexit-related video material shed light on the type of imagery used to influence people by stirring up deep-rooted attitudes toward national pride, immigration, and loss of control. Behrendt surfed the internet and took screenshots of pro- and anti-Brexit videos in the mainstream media, on YouTube, and on social media. He immersed himself in official political messages, amateur propaganda, and personal video contributions, giving equal attention to both sides of the debate.

Behrendt’s approach resonates with Julian Rosefeldt’s artistic practice: both work with found footage, archive materials, deconstruct and recontextualize images to create new layers of meaning. Together with curator Sophia Greiff, Levy and Behrendt will discuss the connections between photobooks, film, and political imagery.

Bildband is an independent bookshop specialized in photography books located in the heart of Berlin Prenzlauer Berg. Since 2015 their team of 4 offer a space for photographers, publishers, designers and photography lovers to enjoy and discover their carefully selected titles.

Those include big publishing houses like MACK, Steidl, Setanta Books, Hartmann Books and Loose Joints as well as many small independent publishers like Witty, TBW Books, Nazraeli Press, DITTO and many more. They also offer a big selection of self published titles by local photographers.