Metamorphosis. States of Change

Referring to societal turning points, crises and political conflicts, as well as transformations of ecosystems, the seven students of Visual Journalism and Documentary Photography at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Hannover (Germany) shed light on the dynamics and origins of these changes. Through diverse photographic approaches, the artists question fixed identities and linear narratives.

In Songs of the Taiga, Nora Schwarz highlights the gradual disappearance of the last remaining old-growth forests in Northern Europe and demonstrates how closely ecological identity is intertwined with cultural identity. In Ortskontrollfahrt, Jonathan Funk explores social tensions in Germany and examines how political alienation undermines trust in democratic institutions. Meanwhile, in Unter den Palmen, Ludwig Nikulski travels along Ukraine’s western borders, documenting places where new fault lines are emerging across Europe.

These works reveal that change is not an abstract concept: it is embodied in social, ecological, and political realities — with its ruptures, transitions, and potentialities. The exhibition invites visitors not only to observe change, but also to understand it as a continuous process of questioning and reconfiguration.