We've been having a wonderful, relaxed summer in Berlin, with a few getaways within Germany, lots of family, friends, fleamarkets, enjoying good food and company and, unfortunately, almost no sleep.

We are two weeks away from a whole new situation, with our lovely (lovely!!) au pair Lily leaving and mini-me starting daycare with a wonderful older Lady and four great other kids. I am split into two when it comes to emotions about this, so happy we are moving on and so, so sad that mini-me is growing up and getting independent. I already know that he will truly enjoy spending half of the day with other kids, going on adventures and testing his bounderies.

My tiny baby has grown into a charming socializer, my hormones are pretty much gone and I am ready to move on, to start being myself again besides being a mother and though I am sad to confess this, we are both ready for this step. I will be traveling and shooting again this fall, N. will stay home as a full time dad a few weeks, there will be more time for us and for work and life goes on.








All photos: Carolin Weinkopf

It's gotten silent around here and though I never wanted this to happen, it just did. I'm pretty much a fulltime mama these days, carrying my big baby around, pushing the stroller through Berlin, diapering, feeding, caring and chasing after a fresh crawler and, oh well, not sleeping too much. My intellectual power is at an all time low and whenever I do have time, I use it to cuddle up with N., to see my dear friends, to catch up on sleep or to read a few lines before getting tired.

Only a few more days before I'll have permanent help (in words: Lily) around here which will hopefully lead to a bit more time for photography outside the house, the energy to tell stories, to capture them and to write along. I try to enjoy every breath of this summer and collect as many memories as possible - in September I'll be back in business with mini-me starting daycare (I'm terrified - he's not!), oh my.

I am hoping to find back into the blog and will fill the past few weeks with posts over time. Until then, excuse-me.


Photo: Carolin Weinkopf

Things are getting better over here - more sleep mostly, finally. More doesn't mean much, but we're getting there, I'm sure.

So much has happened over these past few weeks, I went home to my family twice, spring came and summer is almost here, mini-me is close to crawling and finally eating lots of real food, we went to the zoo, spent May 1st in Kreuzberg and got helping hands from many good friends (thank you!!). I went to Oxford again last weekend and gave a photography workshop, we might get an au pair soon and life is so much nicer when it's sunny outside. Life is good.

Oh, and I almost forgot, our >>exhibition<< is running quite successfully, with plenty of media having featured us, and a number of features having mentioned my name and photography. ♥ (--> Zeit Online, Berliner Zeitung, Tagesspiegel)

(Please excuse the massive amount of photos. But I needed to catch up, right?!)






































































































All photos: Carolin Weinkopf

The reason I haven't been posting much lately is probably obvious, mini-me, 7 months old, has turned into a roaring tiger (toothless, still), I'm quite short on sleep these days and the few jobs I am doing right now are absorbing all my very little free time and energy.

I went home for a few days last week to celebrate my dad's 50th birthday and catch up on some sleep while my and N's family took care of the baby. Seven hours of sleep in a row can do lots of magic, but they can't make up for weeks short on sleep.

Mini-me started sitting up straight yesterday and I am really, really optimistic he'll start crawling soon, hoping he'll be a bit (!) less frustrated about his current unability to do things on his own whilest he wants to so, so bad. Fingers crossed.

(I am preparing for a photo workshop at Oxford University, will be photo-documenting a young female politician during the next few months and will finish the second India post soon. And, actually, have you seen our group exhibition "Siehste, jeht doch!" at Haus am Kleistpark? You should! It's on until June 2nd.)









All photos: Carolin Weinkopf

In late February, we spent almost two weeks in India. It was mini-me's first long distance journey and his first real adventure as well.

After a dream flight with absolutely no crying, quite a bit of room to spread out and lovely co-passengers and stewards caring for us and our baby, we arrived whole and save in Delhi.

The first few days, we spent nice and settled in a good hotel in the heart of New Delhi. I worked for two days while N. took care of mini-me, the rest of the time we explored the old and new city by foot, rickshaw and taxi - enjoying the warm weather and some free time as the three of us, for the first time since months.

Good thing we've lived in Nepal for so long, as for most of our co-travellers had a bit of a culture shock along the way, traffic, pollution and temper couldn't shock us at all.

The really funny thing in India compared to all other destinations I've been to in the world was, that here, people took pictures of us. Actually a really strange feeling, to have a cluster of cell phones around you, snapping photos of your blondness, your blue eyes and your pale skin.

Indians are really kind and they just love babies, so it was easy to get around, and everyone was always willing to help us out. As the reserved Europeans we are, that was sometimes a bit too much, but the warmth of India paired with the cold of the big, big city worked fine for us, I have to say. All together we had some wonderful six days in Delhi, before we headed up north into the mountains.

















All photos: Carolin Weinkopf

One year, we've worked our asses off for this... Come by tonight for our wonderful exhibition "Siehste, jeht doch!" with photographs of 32 of Arno Fischer's last master students. I'd be really happy to welcome you tonight!


Poster Design by Matteo Peterlini, photograph by Eva Brunner.

Here's the official English press release:

Siehste, jeht doch!
The last Master Class of Arno Fischer.

The 32 photographers who attended the last master class with German pre-eminent photographer Arno Fischer are presenting a comprehensive exhibition of their photography in Berlin - showing works that were still supervised by the teacher himself.

Arno Fischer (1927-2011) was a pioneer of GDR-photography, one of the most important photographers of our time and one of the outstanding teachers of his profession in Germany.

The title of the exhibition “Siehste, jeht doch!” was Fischer's verbal reward to appreciate a great piece of photo work, equally approving and encouraging his students.

The exhibition reflects the full range of artistic positions within his master class and his rare ability to comprehend and reflect upon his students’ mere unlimited spectrum of themes and pictorial worlds. Matthias Flügge, curator of Fischer's highly acclaimed 2009 retrospective, is supervising this exhibition as a curatorial advisor. A catalogue will accompany the show with photographs by all participating artists.

The photographers are:
Anna Arendt, Verena Berg, Antje Berghäuser, Sabine von Breunig, Eva Brunner, Michele Caliari, Mischa Christen, Florian Fischer, Olle Fischer, Axel Gehrke, Cordula Giese, Hannah Goldstein, Marta Górnicka, Anne Helmer, M. Kardinal, Meike Kenn, Birgit Krause, Heiko Krause, Claire Laude, Birgit Nitsch, Piotr Pietrus, Uta Protzmann, Judith Schenk, Christoph Schieder, Eric Schütt, Andreas Seibert, Anna Thiele, Thomas Tiltmann, Irina Tübbecke, Luca Vecoli, Carolin Weinkopf, Nicole Woischwill

Weeks ago (feels like months...), mini-me and I packed our stuff for a teeny tiny trip to England's Ivy League University of Oxford to visit my dear friend Lily, to be a judge at St. Peter's college's photo competition and to give a talk on my photography to the students focusing on the aspect of "dignity" in my work.

I felt so honored to be invited and was yet so nervous when finally going. I had expected to meet a handfull of bored, pimpled students yawning while I'd be talking and then was completely blown away by a small, yet packed room of smart-ass, inspiring, incredibly eager and interested people (not only students), grilling me with great questions.

As the talk had been shifted to the day I arrived, I had the next full day to stroll around, to shop and to suck up the beauty of Oxford, just interrupted by two lovely interviews for Oxford's student press. It was sunny and beautiful out and walking around felt so good, I felt like a first year student at Harry Potter's school for magic - Hogwarts (carrying a horcrux, ääääh, baby). Though I had to realize that taking photos with a proper camera isn't exactly easy when carrying a baby in a carrier on your chest (sorry Anton for bumping into your head with the SLR a few times...). That's when I found the iPhone to be much more convenient when not having assistance.

There's a chance I'll return later this year for a photography workshop. Thank you Oxford, for pumping up my job confidence a bit and being so incredibly welcoming to me and my baby.

(Ok, let's just forget about the >>end<< of my trip now, forever!)

































All photos: Carolin Weinkopf

A few days after returning from India we've started feeding solids to mini-me.

As he's not a great fan of mash, I feed him real food most of the time, like chunks of banana, apple, carrot or fennel (based on a method called "baby led weaning"). It's a huge mess and demands constant attention, but we have so much fun.










All photos: Carolin Weinkopf

Since I'm so far behind on my iPhone diaries (thanks to India and all), here's a comprehensive post on the past four wonderful weeks (I excluded Oxford and India, because those are worth an individual post!). And dear Spring, I know you've heard this before, but please, please be a bit more dominant these days. There's still snow in front of my door! And it's almost April, okay?























All photos: Carolin Weinkopf

Dear Mini-Me,

you're six months old today. It's become so wonderfully normal to have you around that I almost missed your half-year birthday today.

The past 181 days have been the loveliest, most exciting, tiring, funniest, most beautiful, delirious, sleepless, hilarious, heartbreaking of my life.

Never have I been more happy than with you. Thank you for being here.

♥


Photo: Carolin Weinkopf