The photographer Henrik Spohler
In 2000, Henrik Spohler began exploring modern economic globalization and its effects on society and the environment through his photographs. He developed a cycle of extensive long-term photographic studies, covering the technical infrastructures of an emerging information age, the changing world of work in increasingly automated industrial production, the consequences of industrial agriculture, the hubs of global trade, and basic research as a driver for future progress. His latest photo project, "Tomorrow Is the Question," showcases state-of-the-art technologies in industry and applied research, and, with a dedicated series on humanoid robots, addresses the merging of humans and machines.
About the series in the cycle of works:
0/1 Dataflow (2000–01)
This photo project examines the hidden infrastructure of the internet. The photographs reveal a monotonous technology that connects us worldwide: uniformly standardized server racks in deserted rooms form the reverse side of the still-young information society. William Gibson's "cyberspace" shines in dazzling bright artificial light in Henrik Spohler's photographs.
"Global Soul" (2002–2008)
For six years, Henrik Spohler photographed cutting-edge production facilities where everything our modern civilization demands is created: computer chips, cars, medicines, airplanes, or frozen pizza. Spohler's images convey the impression of an imaginary mega-factory that could be anywhere in the world and produce any product. The photos tell of fully automated, highly profitable production lines where working people become marginal figures. Is this the global soul of a new industrial age?
"The Third Day" (2010–11)
The project title alludes to the third day of creation. However, Henrik Spohler addresses the monetary relationship between humans and flora. What species emerge in research laboratories when humans breed increasingly profitable crops and, through genetic engineering, become creators themselves? What landscapes arise from seemingly endless monocultures outdoors in California or through greenhouses in Spain or the Netherlands? The photographs show the flip side of the paradisiacal conditions in supermarkets, with a year-round supply of fruits and vegetables from around the world.
"In Between" (2013–15)
How can global trade be captured in images? Henrik Spohler gained access to the hidden infrastructures of global commodity flows: cargo areas of airports, track labyrinths of large marshalling yards, warehouses of international freight forwarders, and container terminals of seaports. His photographs from six countries show special zones optimized for efficiency, possessing their own aesthetic—between clear structure, meditative monotony, and a gigantism that exceeds human imagination. These places are devoid of any individuality; whether Europe or Asia, it is hard to distinguish. Here, the consumer society has created a nameless realm of pure functionality that enables the speed of today's global trade: T-shirts from Taiwan, wine from Australia—ordered today and delivered tomorrow.
"Hypothesis" (2017–19)
Basic scientific research often eludes our imagination. Yet, the constant search for new knowledge is the basis for our progress tomorrow. Since the Enlightenment, scientific discoveries have formed the foundation for industrialization and modern society. Today's basic research acts like a perpetuum mobile for ever-new knowledge, which is later translated into concrete innovations in applied research. At the end of this chain are technologies like the internet, which can fundamentally change our society. Henrik Spohler's photo project addresses science and research and raises questions about our relationship with nature and the environment. The photographs are divided into four chapters, showing research on time, space, matter, and life.
"Tomorrow Is the Question" (2023–25)
After a period of intensive economic globalization and digital networking, our civilization faces fundamental technical and social changes. In the near future, humans, machines, and the environment will connect more intensely than ever before. Self-learning machine systems, modeled on human cognition, will take over complex areas: from industrial production and infrastructure to social coexistence. The societal consequences of this dynamic change are unforeseeable. "Tomorrow Is the Question" is dedicated to this speculative future. The project is divided into two chapters: The first photo series shows places and facilities connected to the major technological questions at the threshold of the future. This covers topics such as digitalization, machine learning, artificial intelligence, quantum computers, virtual realities, future food production, mobility, decarbonization, and the loss of human labor in industrial production. The second chapter consists of a typological photo series of humanoid robots and investigates what mechanical creatures human hubris produces.
Henrik Spohler (*1965) studied at Folkwang Schule/Hochschule in Essen and has worked as a freelance photographer since 1992. He has received numerous awards for his work; his pieces are held in public and private collections. His photographs have been published in six monographs and several anthologies. Since 2009, Henrik Spohler has been a professor at HTW (Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft) in Berlin, teaching photography in the Communication Design program. He lives in Berlin.
