Aktfotografie 1968 - 2015 (German Edition)

In East Germany, a distinctive scene of nude photography developed early, emerging as a space of personal freedom and inspired by the state-tolerated nudist movement. Professional photographers and self-taught artists began producing significant work in aesthetic nude photography. Gerd Rattei, from Cottbus and a graduate of the Leipzig Academy of Fine Arts and Book Arts, was among the pioneers of this genre in the GDR. Since the early 1960s, over more than 50 years, Rattei has documented women and femininity through photography marked by poetry, humor, and deep respect. His images range from playful to romantically staged compositions, characterized by gentle eroticism and aesthetic refinement. His photographic tableaus represent a tribute to beauty and to each model, whether captured in youthful radiance or the soft glow of maturity.