Photography exhibition Female Conductors

Sophia Hegewald is exhibiting her series of portraits of female conductors in the stage container of the Festival Centre at the Kreuzkirche.

Sophia Hegewald: portraits of conductor Anja Bihlmaier

Female conductors are the subject of Sophia Hegewald’s photography diploma project at the Cologne Photo Academy. In many professions, there is still a clear lack of female managers. And this shortage is particularly drastic in the classical music industry, due to a long tradition of male conductors. Although change is now taking place, it is happening very slowly due to the adherence to tradition: Out of 129 professional orchestras, only four are still conducted by women.

As Sophia Hegewald is a musician herself and has played in an orchestra, she is also familiar with prejudices and problems from behind the music stand. Even though the focus is on female conductors, she also considers the topic to be representative of women in leadership positions. The questions and conflicts that arise, the change in management styles – all of this is certainly not unique to classical music. With her pictures, she wants to show that there is not just one way to deal with this, but that every woman has her own leadership style and personality.

The portraits focus on the different characters and personalities of the female conductors. The bright colours and hard flash break with the often very conservative and smooth photos in the classical music sector. They are combined with detailed shots in the form of still lifes or self-portraits. They act as a commentary on the respective portrait and symbolise the different leadership styles and themes that the women in question represent.

Sophia Hegewald has portrayed female conductors such as Johanna Malangre, Marie Jaquot, Holly Choe and Anja Bihlmaier. Her exhibition in the stage container at the festival centre is part of the Beethovenfest event on Saturday 28 September, »Jahrmarkt der Demokratie«, and is supported by the Frauenkulturbüro NRW.

24.9.–29.9., 12:00–17:00

Festival Centre at The Kreuzkirche

An der Evangelischen Kirche
53113 Bonn