Photograph from the work "Rechtes Land" by Julius Schien.
Photograph from the work "Rechtes Land" by Julius Schien.
Photograph from the work "Rechtes Land" by Julius Schien.
Photography student Julius Schien wins this year’s VGH Photo Prize with his project ‘Rechtes Land’, which has been awarded exclusively to students on the ‘Visual Journalism and Documentary Photography’ programme at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Hanover every year since 2008.
Since German reunification, over 200 people have died in Germany as a result of right-wing violence. Confronted with the continuing presence of right-wing extremism in the country, Julius Schien has begun to document all the scenes of right-wing violence. With “Rechtes Land”, he presents a unique visual catalog of these crime scenes. His photographic work brings the places where the crimes took place to the fore like empty stages. The
deserted large-format photographs are accompanied by texts and documentary material that tell the stories of more than 200 fates. “The growing archive serves as a haunting index of right-wing extremist violence and calls on us to remember, reflect and resist. Looking to the future means acknowledging our past – and setting an example against hate,” says Julius Schien.
The high-calibre jury for this year’s VGH Photo Prize voted unanimously for Julius Schien’s work. “The idea of creating a visual catalog of all the sites of right-wing extremist crimes in Germany since reunification period was absolutely convincing, as was Julius Schien’s visual realization. The depicted street corners or waterfront promenades look familiar to us. They stand for the banality of evil, because we understand: It could happen to anyone in any place,” says jury member Barbara Stauss, summing up the decision-making process.
This year’s expert jury consisted of Henner Flohr, Head of Photo Editorial, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung; Lara Huck, Photo Editor, Die Zeit; Nicole Neumann, Photo Editor, Der Spiegel; Guido Schmidtke, Senior Photo Editor, Stern; Hannah Schuh, Visual Director, Art – Das Kunstmagazin; Barbara Stauss, Studio Stauss and Reporters Without Borders; and a representative of VGH.
Julius Schien (1992) is studying Visual Journalism and Documentary Photography in Hanover, where he also lives and works. In his photography, he is primarily looking for answers to the question of what it means to deal with Germany’s political legacy and the country’s right-wing continuity in the 21st century. In doing so, he aims to highlight long-forgotten stories of right-wing violence that lie beneath the surface of everyday life in sober-looking landscape and city portraits. His works are created using analogue large format. Julius Schien is a selected artist of the Triennial of Photography in Hamburg for the European photography platform FUTURES.
With prize money of €10,000, the VGH Insurance Photo Award is one of the highest endowed awards in the field of photography nationwide. With its exclusive sponsorship, VGH Versicherungen supports the internationally renowned “Visual Journalism and Documentary Photography” programme at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Hannover (HsH), which has a focus on visual journalism and documentary photography that is unique in Germany. Based on the media of photography and video, the programme teaches multidisciplinary visual skills. The focus is on journalistic and documentary narratives.
Winner of the VGH Sponsorship Award
For the first time this year, the VGH Sponsorship Award, endowed with €2,000, was awarded alongside the VGH Photo Prize. It provides financial support and mentoring for the continuation of a photographic project.
The winner of the VGH Sponsorship Award 2025 is Serghei Duve, who impressed the jury with his work on the city of Wolfsburg.
Photo: Sergehi Duve
Photo: Sergehi Duve
Serghei Duve was born in Chișinău, Moldova, in 1999. When he was one year old, his parents moved to Germany with him. His interest in photography began at the age of ten, when he received his first camera as a birthday present. In 2021, he began studying Visual Journalism and Documentary Photography at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Hanover. From autumn 2024 to spring 2025, he studied abroad at the KASK School of Arts in Ghent, Belgium. Serghei Duve’s projects explore themes that examine the different forms and conditions of human life.
“We would like to thank VGH Versicherungen for the long-term, sustainable and trusting cooperation and are very pleased about the newly created opportunity to support the continuation of promising projects with the VGH Sponsorship Award. Together with VGH Versicherungen, we can create a great forum for documentary photography in Hannover,” says Prof. Dr. Karen Fromm, Professor of the ‘Visual Journalism and Documentary Photography’ programme.
The awarding of the prize is accompanied by an exhibition of the prize-winning work and the finalists of the jury process at the GAF – Galerie für Fotografie. The award ceremony will take place on Wednesday, 3 December 2025, at 7 p.m. in the rooms of the GAF – Galerie für Fotografie in Hannover. The exhibition will run from 4 December 2025 to 11 January 2026. The high quality and diversity of the student projects impressed this year’s jury. In addition to the winners of the VGH Photo Prize and the VGH Sponsorship Prize, Armina Ahmadinia, Noemi Ehrat, Markus Heft and Jasper Hill received an honorable mention as finalists in the jury process.
Finalists 2025:
Armina Ahmadinia “Mein Haus ist wolkig“
Noemi Ehrat “The Abortion Plot“
Markus Heft “Für uns geträumt“
Jasper Hill “Im Land der weißen Berge”
Carlotta Steinkamp – DEUTSCHLAND, HANNOVER, 29.09.2025: Jurysitzung VGH Fotopreis – Die Juror*innen Guido Schmidtke (stern), Lara Huck (DIE ZEIT), Hannah Schuh (ART – Das Kunstmagazin), Henner Flohr (FAZ), Nicole Neumann (Der Spiegel), Barbara Stauss (Studio Stauss / Reporter ohne Grenzen) und Alexandra Bartsch sehen sich die eingereichten Arbeiten des Studiengangs Visual Journalism & Documentary Photography an. Dekanin Karen Fromm und Studiengangskoordinator Tobias Eineder führen durch den Tag.
Carlotta Steinkamp – DEUTSCHLAND, HANNOVER, 29.09.2025: Jurysitzung VGH Fotopreis – Die Juror*innen Guido Schmidtke (stern), Lara Huck (DIE ZEIT), Hannah Schuh (ART – Das Kunstmagazin), Henner Flohr (FAZ), Nicole Neumann (Der Spiegel), Barbara Stauss (Studio Stauss / Reporter ohne Grenzen) und Alexandra Bartsch sehen sich die eingereichten Arbeiten des Studiengangs Visual Journalism & Documentary Photography an. Dekanin Karen Fromm und Studiengangskoordinator Tobias Eineder führen durch den Tag.
Carlotta Steinkamp – DEUTSCHLAND, HANNOVER, 29.09.2025: Jurysitzung VGH Fotopreis – Die Juror*innen Guido Schmidtke (stern), Lara Huck (DIE ZEIT), Hannah Schuh (ART – Das Kunstmagazin), Henner Flohr (FAZ), Nicole Neumann (Der Spiegel), Barbara Stauss (Studio Stauss / Reporter ohne Grenzen) und Alexandra Bartsch sehen sich die eingereichten Arbeiten des Studiengangs Visual Journalism & Documentary Photography an.
Dates:
Award ceremony and exhibition opening
3 December 2025, 7 p.m.
Exhibition
4 December 2025 – 11 January 2026
Location
GAF – Galerie für Fotografie Eisfabrik,
Seilerstraße 15d Hannover 30171
The gallery is open Thursday to Sunday, 12 noon – 6 p.m.
Further information on the VGH Photo Prize can be found here.
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