In Vienna, as in every other European city, migration and diversity are part of everyday life. The photography exhibition ”OPENCities Faces“ takes a closer look at the openness of 8 European cities and portrays the people behind the migration statistics.

In order to be successful with diversity, cities have to be open. But what exactly does that mean? What are the main characteristics of an open city? What can of policies support openness and which initiatives and projects help a city to become more open?

The photography exhibition OPENCities FACES focuses in on that openness. The British Council has commissioned eight photographers to peer at their cities and to show their personal view on the stories of migrants beyond the statistics. The pictures transcend the thematic area of integration and explore what causes a city to be more or less open.

For Vienna the photographer Martin Fuchs has gone on a quest for enterprises led by migrants. “I set out to investigate Viennese migrantrun businesses beyond the stereotypical fast food outlets. Stores selling specialist goods, from traditional Austrian dresses to Polish books and American hip hop fashion. It has been a fascinating journey“,  says Martin Fuchs. Fuchs was born in 1979 in Vienna, he now works for Magnum New York as freelance, producer and designer. In 2008 he was one of the finalists of the Austrian prize for press photography Objektiv08 (category portraiture).

The exhibition tours European cities, it was featured at the Expo 2010 in Shanghai in the Madrid pavillon. After Belfast, Bilbao, Cardiff, Düsseldorf, Madrid and Sofia the exhibition now stops over in the Vienna Gasometer, before continuing on to Dublin. The photography exhibition is part of the OPENCities project.

Opening Thursday 27 January, 18.00

Mag. Maria Vassilakou, Deputy Mayor
DI Shams Asadi, Project Initiator City of Vienna
Augustin Pallikunnel, Entrepreneur
Mag. Angelika Lošek, British Council

Venue:
Gasometer B
Guglgasse 8, 1110 Wien
Access via U3 Gasometer - Gasometer A
For information about wheelchair access, please contact angelika.losek@britishcouncil.at.

Photo:
Gordana Radojevic in ihrem österreichischen Trachtengeschäft
Copyright: Martin Fuchs