Herlinde Koelbl: Angela Merkel.

Herlinde Koelbl took twenty-three portraits of Angela Merkel. The setting was always the same: a white wall, a chair and no instructions from the photographer. The photos show Angela Merkel during her rise from 'Kohl's girl' to the most powerful head of government in the world.

Herlinde Koelbl also combined the sessions with in-depth conversations in which she got unusually close to Angela Merkel on a human level. Quotes from these accompany the pictures. Merkel herself initially found the interviews 'incredibly annoying'. But later 'I realised that I suddenly asked myself: Was Mrs Koelbl actually there this year? '*.

Herlinde Koelbl's Merkel portraits are an extension of her long-term study 'Traces of Power', for which she photographed well-known politicians, and a journey through time during the Angela Merkel era.