Adam Broomberg (born November 11, 1970) is a South African artist, educator, and activist currently based in Berlin, Germany. He is the co-founder and coordinator of the NGO Artists + Allies x Hebron alongside the Palestinian activist Issa Amro.[2]
Broomberg's work often explores themes of conflict, power, and how these themes all intersect with the photographic medium. Eyal Weizman described his practice as “hacking into the source code of photography.”[3] He is known for challenging existing power structures and using art as a means of fostering social change. His practice has been described as both provocative and thought-provoking, encouraging viewers to critically examine their perspectives and confront uncomfortable truths.[4]
Despite his prolific career, including numerous solo exhibitions including at The Centre Georges Pompidou (2018) and the Hasselblad Center (2017), his participation in international group shows include the Venice Biennale (2024), 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), his work being 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, he remains committed to challenging existing power structures and using art as a means of fostering social change.
Early life and education
He grew up in a politically charged environment during the Apartheid era in South Africa where he was sent to Zionist Jewish religious school, which profoundly influenced his later artistic practice. Broomberg’s upbringing in a racially and ethnically segregated society shaped his awareness of social inequalities and fueled his desire to challenge dominant narratives through his work.[5]
His education in South Africa during the post-apartheid transition further informed his critical perspective on power dynamics and representation, themes that would become central to his artistic practice.[7]
Teaching and academic career
Broomberg was professor of photography at the Hochschule für bildende Künste (HFBK) in Hamburg, Germany, from 2015 to 2021. He briefly held the position of visiting professor at Karlsruhe (HfG) from October 2024 which was cut short due to his vocal solidarity with the Palestinian struggle and criticism of Zionism.
He is a faculty member on MA programme, Photography & Society at the Royal Academy of Art (KABK) in the Hague.[8] Broomberg's commitment to education extends beyond the classroom, as he frequently leads workshops and lectures at international institutions.[9]
In the early 2000s, Adam Broomberg formed a creative partnership with fellow artist Oliver Chanarin, who was born in London in 1971.[10] Both were awarded the Deutsche Börse Photography Prize (2013) for their publication War Primer 2,[11] The ICP Infinity Award (2014) for Holy Bible[12] as well as the Arles Photo Text Award (2018) for War Primer 2.[13] Their work has been celebrated for its intellectual rigor, technical innovation, and ability to spark meaningful critical dialogue.
They ended their 23 year collaboration with an exhibition entitled The Last Estate Broomberg & Chanarin at Fabri i Coats in Barcelona.[15]
Activism
Founding of Linx
At the age of 16, Adam Broomberg co-founded a political organisation called \"Linx\" in South Africa alongside other young students, including Yaël Farber. The group aimed to conscientise young white South Africans about the realities of Apartheid and foster political awareness among the youth.
In 2013, Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin \"spent a month in South Africa\" to highlight the racial bias in photographic technology during the Apartheid era. They used decades-old film engineered primarily for white faces to create their work.[16] They employed Polaroid's vintage ID-2 camera, which included a \"boost\" button to increase the flash intensity, allowing it to photograph black people for the notorious passbooks, or \"dompas,\" used by the state to control their movements.
Spirit is a Bone
Another collaborative project with Oliver Chanarin, Spirit is a Bone, critiques facial recognition technology, particularly in Russia. The project examines how photographed faces, stripped of context and interaction, become mere digital equivalents of death masks, highlighting the dehumanizing effects of such technologies.[17]
Baby It's Cold Outside
In 2016, ahead of the Brexitreferendum, Broomberg and Chanarin designed and sold ethically made t-shirts bearing the slogan \"Baby It’s Cold Outside.\"[18] The slogan, a reference to the 1940s eponymous Christmas song, served as a protest against a potential exit from the European Union. Reflecting on his global identity, Broomberg said, \"My family escaped Europe before the Holocaust, I grew up in Africa, I learnt to be an artist in Italy, and I’ve lived in England for 20 years. I feel at home in the world.”[19]
Hands off our Revolution
In 2016, Broomberg criticised the art market for continuing \"business as usual\" following the election of Donald Trump. To counter modern fascism, he created \"Hands off our Revolution,\" a collaborative web-based art project involving artists, thinkers, and researchers.[20] The project’s manifesto stated, “This time, the threat, in the form of Donald Trump’s ‘whitelash’ fascism, is not just apparent in the United States. Trump’s election has emboldened the right wing throughout the world.”
Artists + Allies x Hebron
Founded by Broomberg, this initiative focuses on the surveillance methods used by Israeli authorities to monitor Palestinians in and around Hebron. Often dubbed \"Facebook for Palestinians,\" this surveillance relies heavily on facial recognition technology.[21] The initiative repurposed this technology in a project called \"Counter-Surveillance: H2,\" which aimed to protect the olive harvest instead of surveilling Palestinian communities.[22][bettersourceneeded]
Row with Stefan Hensel
In February 2023, Broomberg defended himself in an article in Die Zeit[23] against allegations of antisemitism made by Stefan Hensel, Hamburg's commissioner against antisemitism.[24] Broomberg expressed fears for his safety in Germany and defended his support for the BDS movement.
Support for BDS
In 2021, Broomberg spoke out in an article in taz[25] against the Hochschule für bildende Künste Hamburg (HFBK), which ended its collaboration with him after he identified the ongoing Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories as \"apartheid.\" He also called on artists to boycott the Zabludowicz Art Trust, citing its alleged funding from Israeli arms industries.[26][27]
Berlin Arrest
In May 2023, Broomberg was arrested by German police at a Jewish-led Nakba commemoration in Berlin.[28]
Exhibitions
2024
SOUTH WEST BANK. Landworks, Collective Action and Sound, Collateral Event of the 60th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, Venice, Italy[29]
(2020) Bureaucracy of Angels (online), signs and symbols, New York, USA[58]
Selected bibliography
2024
Anchor in the Landscape (book), with Rafael Gonzalez, MACK books ISBN978-1-915743-55-5{{isbn}}: Check isbn value: checksum (help)
2023
Vitamin C+: Collage in Contemporary Art (book), edited by Rebecca Morrill, Phaidon Press: London & New York ISBN978-1-838665-57-9
Rubin, Birgitta, "Fantasieggande vårprogram på Magasin III" (Imaginative spring program at Magasin III), Dagens Nyheter, March 1
2022
Ruka, Elīna, "The (art) world of Adam Broomberg," FK Magazine, October 6
Phearse, Terrence, "Adam Broomberg: Rare and Bare", Musée Magazine, Issue No. 27, June 2022 signs and symbols | New York, New York | www.signsandsymbols.art
Sanchez, Gabriel H., "The Camera Bag: Great Photography to See Now", PhotoSpark, January 25
Emanations: The Art of the Cameraless Photograph (book), Geoffrey Batchen, The Govett-Brewster Art Gallery and DelMonico Books – Prestel. ISBN978-3-791355-04-7
Il y a de l'autre (catalog), Julie Jones and Agnés Geoffrey, RM/JUMEX
Watched: Surveillance, Art and Photography (catalog), Cornerhouse Publications
2015
Art & Religion in the 21st Century (book), Aaron Rosen, Thames & Hudson. ISBN978-0-500293-03-4
Art in the Age of... (catalog), Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art
COLORS: A Book About a Magazine About the Rest of the World (book), Damiani / Fabrica. ISBN978-8-862084-24-6
Perspectives on Place: Theory and Practice in Landscape Photography (book), J.A.P Alexander, Bloomsbury. ISBN978-1-472533-89-0
Rudiments (catalog), Centre for Contemporary Art Ujazdowski Castle
Awards and recognition
Throughout his career, Broomberg has received numerous awards and accolades for his contributions to the field of contemporary art.
2018
Photo Text Book Award at the Arles Photo Festival, Arles, France (together w. Chanarin)[59]
2014
Infinity Award, International Center of Photography, New York, New York (together w. Chanarin)[60]
2013
Deutsche Börse Photography Prize, The Photographers Gallery, London, UK (together w. Chanarin)[61]
2004
Vic Odden Award, Royal Photographic Society, Bath, UK (together w. Chanarin)[62]
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