“I don’t tell stories, I encounter them.”
Felix Vollmann
As the son of a TV cameraman it’s no surprise that Felix was always interested in images. He studied communication sciences in Berlin, specialising in Photography and Film. Then he completed his master's degree in International Relations in Nairobi, Kenya. This course of study was of great importance to him because he knew that political, geopolitical, postcolonial, and thus decolonial knowledge was of utmost importance for his photographic work.
From 2011, he worked as a photojournalist for the United Nations. For ten years, he documented political, social, and environmental realities in Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean—in countries such as Burkina Faso, Kenya, Vietnam, Mozambique, South Africa, and Belize. His work often emerged in contexts of upheaval: climate crises, natural disasters, urban transformation, and migration.
Despite the grand themes, the focus always remained on people in their everyday lives. His photography moves between portraiture and street photography.
Felix sells his works in Limited Editions. He also sells prints through his own website. We will regularly update the number of copies available at Against the Grain. Each print will come with a Certificate of Authenticity.
Exhibitions
Date: 12. September - 30. November 2025. Title: Tchiloli Demasked. Location: Sargfabrik / Teil der FOTOWIEN 2025 / Foto Arsenal Wien
Date: 7. November - 10. Dezember 2024. Title: Tchiloli Demasked. Location: Embassy of the Republic of Angola, Berlin
Date: 16. Mai - 30. Mai, 2025 Titel: Tchiloli Demasked Location: DoxDoks, Köln
Date: 23. Mai - 27. Juni, 2025 Title: Tchiloli Demasked Location: Fotogalerie Friedrichshain with Analogue Now, Berlin
Date: Titel: 14 Juli - 14 August 2025 Winner of Photography Foundation Award / Leica Grant Location: Leica Gallery London
Date: Feb 2025 Title: Himmelsrichtungen - Collection Location: Studio1111
Date: Juni-Oktober 2024 Title: Complementing Time, Aperture Film Lab Location: Berlin
Date: 27. Juni Title: Hundred Nows Exhibition and Book Launch Location: Leica Store Berlin
Date: Oktober - Dezember 2023 Title: Saison Santoméene Location: Alliance Française São Tomé and Gabon
Prizes, Nominations, Publications/Interviews
Date: 2016/2017 Title: Nominierung: Deutscher Menschenrechtsfilmpreis Location: Nairobi, Kenia
Date: 2023 Title: Hundred Nows, self-publish photo book, Leica Berlin Location: Berlin, Deutschland
Date: 2025. Title: Interview: Shackleton und Interpubliqmag Location: UK und LA
2024 Leica Grantee: Gewinner Photography Foundation Awards 2024
