Into the Unseen

The Walther Collection is a charitable art foundation dedicated to the critical understanding of historical and contemporary photography and related lens-based media. Through a dedicated program of international exhibitions, in-depth collecting, original research and scholarly publications, the collection aims to highlight the social uses of photography, and to expand the history of the medium. The Walther Collection's diverse activities are centered on its expansive holdings of photography and media art from Africa, China, Japan, Europe and America, as well as vernacular imagery from across the globe. Steidl's books with the collection include Events of the Self: Portraiture and Social Identity (2010), Appropriated Landscapes (2011), Distance and Desire: Encounters with the African Archive (2013), The Order of Things: Photography from The Walther Collection (2015), Photography and Video Art (2017), Life and Dreams: Contemporary Chinese Photography and Media Art (2018), Imagining Everyday Life: Engagements with Vernacular Photography (2020) and Re/ Trace—Formations of Likeness (2025).