Julius Schrank wins World Press Photo Award

We are very proud to announce that Julius Schrank’s image »Kachin fighters« has won 1st prize in the Daily Life Singles Category in the World Press Photo Contest 2014.

The image shows Kachin Independence Army fighters who are drinking and celebrating at a funeral of one of their commanders who died the day before.

Julius Schrank – World Press Photo Award

The image is part of an ongoing long term project on the conflicts in Burma. Julius Schrank is right now continuing this work and is currently in the Burmese Jungle.

See the awarded picture and all other award-winning images here.

Upcoming exhibition in Stuttgart, Germany

My story The Apparatus will be shown in an exhibition organised by the BFF, the German Association of Freelance Photographers, from march 23 – april 14, 2013 in Stuttgart, Germany at the »Haus der Wirtschaft Baden-Württemberg«.

From the series »The Apparatus« by Lene Münch

From the series »The Apparatus« by Lene Münch

The opening of the exhibition Sternstunden der Fotografie will take place on Friday, march 22 at 7 pm during the legendary »night of the photographs«.

Next to the pictures of world famous photographers such as Anton Stankowski, David Douglas Duncan, Miles Aldridge, Reinhart Wolf, Werner Pawlok, Dietmar Henneka and Ralph Gibson the five winning series of the 24th international BFF promotion award by Helen Sobiralski »Cockaignesque«, Liang Gao »Einblicke.China«, Paula Markert »Die Verhältnisse«, Lene Münch »Der Apparat« and Philipp Peter Wülfing »Alzheimer« will be on show.

Sternstunden der Fotografie
the exhibition runs from march 23 until april 14, 2013
Haus der Wirtschaft Baden-Württemberg
Willi Bleicher-Straße 19
70174 Stuttgart, Germany

Opening hours daily from 11 am to 8 pm.
No entrance fee.

Lene Münch wins BFF Promotion Award

Lene Münchs photobook »Der Apparat« (The Apparatus) has been awarded with the BFF Promotion Award 2012. Every year the BFF Promotion Award is bestowed on the 5 best degree works in the field of photography by the German Association of Freelance Photographers (BFF – Bund Freischaffender Foto-Designer) and sponsored by the Kodak Cultural Program, the magazine stern, NEON, Leica Camera AG, the foundation Reinhart-Wolf-Stiftung and the Ministry of Finance and Economics of the German State of Baden-Wuerttemberg.

The Jury:

Jutta Buer (Board of Directors / Reinhart-Wolf-Stiftung)
Andrea Gothe (photo director / stern)
Anna Gripp (Editor / Photonews)
Gisela Kayser (Artistic Director / Freundeskreis Willy-Brandt-Haus e.V.)
Jochen Rädeker (President / ADC Germany)
Prof. Manfred Schmalriede (Berlin / Pforzheim)
Dr. Claude W. Sui (Director and Curator / Forum Internationale Fotografie der Reiss-Engelhorn-Museen)

About the book:

»The Apparatus« focuses on a theme of our time and tells a story apart from sensations. Offices and institutions are in themselves boring places that evoke a feeling of unease and anxiety, when getting in touch with them.

It was clear from the outset that I didn’t want to reproduce the classic stereotypes when dealing with this subject. Full waiting rooms, long corridors and annoyed faces simply didn’t interest me in this story. These images are somehow already known too well. I was rather interested in the nature of the offices and institutions themselves. In the apparatus itself.

I was not only interested in the typical offices and institutions, but also in scenes beside. This is why I was not only in offices and administrative buildings but have also had a look at the former home of the former chancellors, have been underground in the mine Asse II, where the Federal Office for Radiation Protection investigates for solutions to the local problem of final disposal of nuclear waste and have been told that there is a kind of TÜV for plants (Federal Office of Plant Varieties). Also new to me was, that a chimney sweep is, as a single person, as well an institution for himself.

New York Photo Awards: Lene wins the student category »Photographic Book«

Last night, at the award ceremony, photographers from around the world have been awarded with the »New York Photo Awards«, one winner and two honorable mentions in each of the seven general categories and five student categories.

I’m very happy to announce, that I am the winner of the student category »Photographic Book«. I applied with my book »Ewig treu«, which portrays the lifestyle of student fraternities in Germany.

The New York Photo Awards 2011 are part of the New York Photo Festival, which takes place in NYC right now (may 11th until 15th).

Top 10 emerging photographers from Germany

Florian Manz, Lene Münch and Julius Schrank are three of the TOP TEN UNTER 30 emerging photographers from Germany selected by »flare« magazine.

The jury consisted of the gallery owner Robert Morat, the art director Matthias Ballmann, the photographer Sebastian Bolesch and a Representative of the photoeditors of Spiegel Online. To see the other 7 photographers who have been selected click here.



Rückblende 2010 – Award for political photography

One of my portraits of the German politician Hans-Christian Ströbele (Green Party) that I shot for the Danish Newspaper »Information« has been nominated for the Award »Rückblende 2010« and is now being exhibited in different Cities around Germany and Belgium:

Berlin, Landesvertretung Rheinland-Pfalz, Jan 21st until Feb 20th 2011
Bonn, Haus der Geschichte der BRD
, March 2nd until April 3rd 2011


Mainz, SWR-Funkhaus, April 13th until May 13th 2011


Brüssel, Vertretung des Landes Rheinland-Pfalz, 
May 19th 2011


Trier, Kurfürstliches Palais der ADD, 
June 1st until June 17th 2011


Leipzig, Zeitgeschichtliches Forum Leipzig
, July 7th until Aug 28th 2011


Koblenz, Struktur- und Genehmigungsdirektion
, Sept 14th until Oct 21st 2011

The catalog can be ordered here.