Sven Johne
Sven Johne works primarily with photography, film, text and artistic research. He was born in 1976 in East Germany’s Bergen auf Rügen, and now lives in Berlin. His work often explores the social consequences of German reunification and social upheavals across the political West. For that Johne frequently combines documentary and biographical research with fictional or literary elements. As a result, his works navigate the space between reality, memory and narrative. Johne is often drawn to individual personal tragedies and side events, his so-called “footnotes of world history”. His works took part in numerous solo and group exhibitions, festivals and biennials, including the Berlin Biennale (2022), the Karachi Biennale in Pakistan (2019), the Riga Biennale (2018), the OFF Biennale in Budapest (2017) and the Thessaloniki Biennale (2015). His oeuvre has received numerous accolades, including the 2016 Art Prize of the Akademie der Künste (in the Visual Arts section), the Casa Baldi Fellowship from the German Academy Villa Massimo (2013), the Karl Schmidt-Rottluff Fellowship (2010), the Marion Ermer Prize (2005), and the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation’s scholarship for contemporary German photography (2004). Most recently, he was awarded the E.ON Foundation’s Visit Grant (2022) and a grant from the DZ Bank Kunststiftung (2025) for his extensive projects. His works are represented in numerous German and international collections, including the Museum Folkwang in Essen, MUDAM in Luxembourg, the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich, and the Fondazione Mast in Bologna, Italy.
Sven Johne is in residence at the Tarabya Cultural Academy from June to September 2026.
Sven Johne works primarily with photography, film, text and artistic research. He was born in 1976 in East Germany’s Bergen auf Rügen, and now lives in Berlin. His work often explores the social consequences of German reunification and social upheavals across the political West. For that Johne frequently combines documentary and biographical research with fictional or literary elements. As a result, his works navigate the space between reality, memory and narrative. Johne is often drawn to individual personal tragedies and side events, his so-called “footnotes of world history”. His works took part in numerous solo and group exhibitions, festivals and biennials, including the Berlin Biennale (2022), the Karachi Biennale in Pakistan (2019), the Riga Biennale (2018), the OFF Biennale in Budapest (2017) and the Thessaloniki Biennale (2015). His oeuvre has received numerous accolades, including the 2016 Art Prize of the Akademie der Künste (in the Visual Arts section), the Casa Baldi Fellowship from the German Academy Villa Massimo (2013), the Karl Schmidt-Rottluff Fellowship (2010), the Marion Ermer Prize (2005), and the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation’s scholarship for contemporary German photography (2004). Most recently, he was awarded the E.ON Foundation’s Visit Grant (2022) and a grant from the DZ Bank Kunststiftung (2025) for his extensive projects. His works are represented in numerous German and international collections, including the Museum Folkwang in Essen, MUDAM in Luxembourg, the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich, and the Fondazione Mast in Bologna, Italy.
Sven Johne is in residence at the Tarabya Cultural Academy from June to September 2026.