Deffarge & Troeller: No Pictures to Dream of

The French journalist Marie-Claude Deffarge and the Luxembourger Gordian Troeller reported from all over the world in a trenchant, subjective and often controversial manner. They stand for political and critical journalism from the 1950s onwards. In view of today’s crisis in journalism, a new look at their work is of interest to society as a whole. Marie-Claude Deffarge (1924–1984) and Gordian Troeller (1917–2003) made their reports from over 55 countries around the world, most often from the Middle East and the Global South. Their reportages were mainly published in Stern magazine in the 1960s and their later films were broadcast on television. “Value-free is worthless”—an abbreviated but appropriate quote from Gordian Troeller—describes their motto in over 100 international reportages and around 80 documentaries over half a century. The couple reached a wide audience with their stories about revolutions, cultural struggles and human rights. Over the past two decades, the work of Deffarge & Troeller has gradually receded from public attention. Yet their reporting noticeably did not lose its relevance. Whether political conflicts in Iran, Palestine, Somalia, Eritrea or criticism of capitalism and feminism: they tracked down the causes of the crises that continue to influence world events.

Both showed with great empathy the realities of life for people in 55 countries, from Japan to Yemen, from Senegal to Peru. Their analyses went to the heart of political confrontations, intercultural tensions and social injustice, using countless examples to reveal economic exploitation, ethnocentric arrogance and the oppression of women on all continents. Impressive images bring the world’s crises close to us, but, as Deffarge vehemently defended, they are “not images to dream about”. 

The exhibition not only recapitulates the most crucial global political issues of the second half of the 20th century, but also presents the distinctive viewpoints of the two journalists, from the “senseless claim to objectivity” to the criticism of progress and ethnocentrism.

At the heart of this presentation is the Deffarge & Troeller archive, which provides deep insights into their work and the media landscape of the time. Over 100,000 negatives, slides and prints as well as films, tapes and research material provide a diverse overview of the creation of the reports through to their reception. With the first comprehensive retrospective combining their photo and film reports, the work of these two journalists can now be rediscovered.

The exhibition is a co-operation between the Museum Folkwang and the CNA, Luxembourg. It is supported by the Ministry of Culture and Science of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia and the Gouvernement Du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg, Ministère de la Culture.

A richly illustrated publication on the exhibition will be launched by Scheidegger & Spiess, Zürich (€ 48, ISBN: 978-3-03942-251-7). It will also be accompanied by an extensive programme of events.