Two Pairs of Eyes. Photographs by Donata and Wim Wenders
On view at the Ernst Leitz Museum Wetzlar from June 11 to September 20, 2026, Two Pairs of Eyes brings together the photographic work of Donata and Wim Wenders in a curated dialogue shaped by both proximity and difference.
Artistic production often emerges through exchange, and in the constellation of a couple that dynamic becomes especially revealing. The photographs of Donata and Wim Wenders are strikingly distinct in approach, yet united by a shared investment in images that reach beyond the documentary. Together, they trace a space between cinematic vision and photographic condensation, between expansiveness and intimacy, between clarity and dissolution.
Wim Wenders works in color, capturing landscapes and architecture with clarity and an eye for the quietly unexpected. His images are largely unpeopled, yet alive with trace and presence. Donata Wenders works in an altogether different register, drawn to people and to a minimalist language of light, shadow, and gesture. Her subjects range from prominent contemporaries to anonymous figures dissolved by abstraction and long exposure into luminous shadow forms. Her installations extend this inquiry through cross-fading, double exposures, and experimental technique.
The exhibition brings together numerous works, including many widely considered iconic, alongside more recent pieces.
About the Authors
Born in Berlin in 1965, Donata Wenders studied film and theatre in Berlin and Stuttgart from 1984 to 1989, going on to work for many years as a camera assistant and Director of Photography on feature films and documentaries. She has been dedicated to photography since 1995, and her work has appeared in international newspapers and magazines and been exhibited widely at home and abroad. She has published numerous photo books, many in collaboration with Wim Wenders, whom she married in 1993. She is a member of the board of the Wim Wenders Foundation in Düsseldorf.
Born in Düsseldorf in 1945, Wim Wenders is among the most internationally recognized German directors. After brief studies in medicine, philosophy, and sociology, he turned to film, first in Paris and later in Munich, where he enrolled in the newly founded University of Television and Film. A key figure in the New German Cinema movement of the 1970s, he has long been considered one of the most important voices in contemporary world cinema. His films, from Paris, Texas (1984) and Wings of Desire (1987) to Buena Vista Social Club (1999) and Perfect Days (2023), have shaped the history of the medium. His photographic practice grew from his time in the American West during the preparations for Paris, Texas, documented in the series Written in the West. Self-described as “a traveller, then a director or photographer,” he has since built a parallel body of work spanning exhibitions worldwide, numerous photo books, and collections of writing. He lives and works in Berlin with his wife.
Two Pairs of Eyes. Photographs by Donata and Wim Wenders
June 11 – September 20, 2026
Ernst Leitz Museum – Wetzlar – Germany
More info:
https://leicawelt.com/
https://donatawenders.com/
https://www.wim-wenders.com/
