Cocktail Prolongé: F.C. Gundlach Special

As one of the most influential German fashion photographers from the 1950s to the 1980s, F.C. Gundlach decisively shaped the aesthetic stylization of the female body. As a private collector, however, his passion was devoted to more provocative, ambiguous, and profound forms of corporeality. Extravagance and queerness are expressed in these works just as much as vulnerability and nonconformity. Drawing on around 300 works from the F.C. Gundlach Collection, the exhibition Cocktail Prolongé: F. C. Gundlach Special explores the diverse ways in which corporeality can be staged — always with an eye to how the body becomes a medium for the portrayal of roles, fantasies, and desires, as well as for articulating critical demands.

The works presented — which F.C. Gundlach began collecting in the mid-1970s — are highly topical, not only in light of the growing visibility of the queer community, but also because they reveal a fascinating and deeply intimate, indeed personal, aspect of his private collection: the vulnerable and the defiant body, the tamed and the untamed, the patient and the restless body — as captured from the most diverse perspectives and driven by a wide range of motivations.

Presented as part of the 9th Triennial of Photography Hamburg, the exhibition is conceived as a tribute to F.C. Gundlach himself — who would have celebrated his 100th birthday on July 16, 2026 — and who was also the initiator of the Triennial. The exhibition title draws on Gundlach’s idea of inviting friends and acquaintances to a Cocktail Prolongé — an extended gathering for viewing, discussing, and celebrating the collection’s manifold richness together.

A richly illustrated catalogue will be published by Kehrer Verlag to accompany the exhibition, featuring texts by Enno Kaufhold, Ulrich Pohlmann, Jana Haeckel, and Sabine Schnakenberg.

The exhibition is part of the 9th Triennial of Photography Hamburg and is curated by Dr. Sabine Schnakenberg, Curator of the F.C. Gundlach Collection at the House of Photography, Deichtorhallen Hamburg.