10 Days
10 Topics
Fri, 19.06. Stereotypes
Established patterns of behaviour and thinking determine and simplify not only our understanding of the world, but of everyday life as well. Categorising things lets us believe that we understand the world. For instance, we know that a bicycle has one set of handlebars and two wheels. However, this knowledge is not equal to a true understanding of the functioning of a bicycle. It merely keeps us, every time we see a bicycle, from having to consider how it is used. We devise templates; these can be problematic as well as practical. Similar processes take place at the interpersonal level as well: we categorise people and stereotypes arise. These reduce people and groups to characteristics and behaviours that are seldom true and never reflect the entire reality. They generalise and create an image of the people concerned. This is how they deprive us of the possibility for unbiased encounters. But how do stereotypes arise? How do they become visible in the medium of photography? How can we handle them, and perhaps even dismantle them? At the beginning of the first digital Lumix Festival, we will focus on stereotypes in photography. This diverse programme will concentrate on the image of women in China and a rugby team in Berlin. Moreover, we will host a LIVE Talk about how Islam is depicted in visual journalism in Germany.
