Fashion below, nudes above - photos by Günter Rössler in Apolda

The well-known photographer Günter Rössler would have been 100 years old this year - to mark the occasion, the Kunsthaus Apolda Avantgarde is showing photographs by the artist, who died on New Year's Eve 2012. The exhibition was curated by Kirsten Schlegel, Rössler's widow and executor of his estate. She once posed for her future husband herself. On 29 January and 29 April, Schlegel will personally guide visitors through the exhibition as part of the accompanying program.

Around 130 black and white photographs will be shown from 18 January to 3 May under the title "Günter Rössler - Fashion and Nude Photography". The photographs date back six decades and, according to the Kunsthaus, are intended to provide an overview of the work of one of the most important German photographers of the second half of the 20th century.

"Maximum authenticity of the girls"

Rössler's reportage and fashion photography can be seen on the lower floor, while the nudes are on the second floor. Rössler once told dpa that his aim was to achieve the "highest possible authenticity of the girls". In an audio guide for the exhibition, the models themselves will have their say and talk about the photographs and their work with Rössler. A 90-minute documentary film will also be shown as part of the exhibition.

In GDR times, Rössler, who had studied photography and worked freelance, became famous with his pictures in "Magazin" and "Sibylle". In 1984, "Playboy" printed a photo series entitled "Girls of the GDR".
Shortly before his death, "Starke Frauen im Osten" was published, a photo book featuring his most famous models. The photographer lived for a long time in Markkleeberg on the outskirts of his native Leipzig.