|
|
2014 is not just the 100th anniversary year of Leica photography, but it also marks the 60th birthday of the Leica M. To celebrate the occasion, the Leica Museum at Leitz Park presents a special exhibition spanning six decades of the Leica M-System. We were able to speak with Lars Netopil, curator of the exhibition.
Q: Mr. Netopil, would you tell our Leica Blog readers a little bit about yourself.
A: I was born in 1968 and bought my first Leica when I was fourteen years old. Ever since then, my fascination of this unique camera has never left me. After finishing my law degree, I dedicated myself entirely to Leica. I’ve been the vice president of the Leica Historical Society since 1993, and in 1996 I opened the specialist retail venue, Lars Netopil Classic Cameras in Wetzlar (Leica Store Wetzlar Old-town). In addition to my work within the international Leica collectors market, I am also a consultant for Leica museums and various auction houses. Since 1999, I have been in an advisory position for Leica Camera AG and the company’s Historical Archive and Museum Department.
Q: What can visitors expect to see in the exhibition, and where did you source the items on display?
A: The Leica Museum in Wetzlar’s Leitz Park features a permanent exhibition showing the developmental history of all of the company’s product lines. This very well-executed display of cameras and lenses naturally includes the M-System, showing practically its entire history in the form of serially produced models from 1954 to the present. So for this temporary exhibition, I felt that it was important to avoid overlaps as much as possible. Obviously we show the very first version of the M3 as our first exhibit, exactly as it was introduced at photokina 1954. All subsequent exhibits are exceptional and standout items from the M’s sixty year history. The spectrum ranges from prototypes built before 1954, specialist models produced for military or scientific photography, all the way to cameras that were dedicated to famous personalities. I was aiming for diversity. I want the avid collector, who may already own similar versions to the displayed items, to still discover things that stop them in their tracks. At the same time, I want the exhibition to appeal to any ordinary visitor to the factory, compelling them to investigate further. For this purpose, we have installed touch screens offering additional information on every exhibit. That was the really labour-intensive part of the exhibition. The displayed items were taken from the museum’s own collection. Years ago, when the company was struggling to survive, some vital pieces from the museum’s holdings were unfortunately sold. Now however, thanks to the very fortuitous acquisition of a significant Leica collection from the USA, the museum once again returns to a standard that befits a global company.
...
Click here for reading
|
|
發表於 2014-11-10 21:38:12
