Wolfgang Strassl

Defying traditional portraiture, Wolfgang Strassl (*1956) has made a series of photographs which encapsulates the rich, varied, eclectic and diverse population of London as seen in the democratising space of a carriage on the London Underground. By omitting the face in these portraits, Strassl allows us an undistracted and genuine perusal of these passengers and the stories, which their visual appearances are telling. This also challenges our ability to see, recognise and understand these stories. It is a gentle yet pervasive look at the great sea of humanity travelling in subterranean London and the rich diversity in this contemporary metropolis.

Text in English and German.

Wolfgang Strassl was born in Munich in 1956, where he still lives. Having spent almost a decade in Tel Aviv, London has become his second home recently. As a photographer, he is interested in social systems and spaces, in particular in the environments in which social transactions and interactions take place. He understands his practice as a reflection on the characteristics and conditions of human existence in the 21st century. His work has been subject of many international exhibitions, and he has published numerous books, most recently the photographic study Homeland - East Jerusalem Landscapes (Kerber, 2016).