Through a gift in 2018, the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz received the complete estate of Leni Riefenstahl (1902–2003) consisting of films and photographs, manuscripts, letters, files, documents, ethnographica, textiles and film-related materials. The holdings are stored at the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin’s Kunstbibliothek (Art Library) and Ethnologisches Museum (Ethnological Museum) and at the Stiftung Deutsche Kinemathek.
Leni Riefenstahl is one of the most famous and controversial artists in the history of German film and photography. Her biography spans the entire 20th century and is remarkable not only for its marked artistic creativity that continued into old age but also for the artist’s adaptability to various political systems. This is reflected in her archive, with which she worked closely throughout her life and which until now has been largely closed to critical research.
The estate offers enormous research potential. At the same time, its holdings pose a considerable challenge, in terms of their scope and diversity, as well as from an ethical, legal and socio-political perspective. The project aims to successively develop a series of special-focus projects, each offering different viewpoints. An international scientific advisory board supports the cross-institutional collaboration.
The German-Sudanese collaborative research project was initiated in 2021 to explore and critically evaluate what is referred to as Leni Riefenstahl’s “Nuba work”. It was carried out in a partnership consisting of the Ethnologisches Museum and the Kunstbibliothek – Staatliche Museen zu Berlin; the Pan-Nuba Council, Sudan; the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin; and the Stiftung Deutsche Kinemathek. It used digitised versions of Riefenstahl’s photographs and films for the first time to focus attention on how members of the Nuba communities viewed these works. The Nuba Images Website provides the public with insights into the research process.
The basis for the collaborative cataloguing and research processes was the complete digitisation of all 35mm slides and selected prints of Riefenstahl’s Nuba photographs. An AI-based software solution for image recognition and sorting, developed at the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, was used to sort, catalogue and compile the datasets. This tool is particularly helpful in reconstructing the context of the works and compiling all photographs of specific individuals. Conservation measures have been completed on the estate’s holdings. The ethnographic objects from the estate held by the Ethnologisches Museum have also been digitally catalogued and undergone restoration. The 680 objects have been published on the Staatliche Museen Sammlungen Online website.
The collaborative research included workshops with representatives of the Pan-Nuba Council, Sudanese researchers, and artists in Kampala, Uganda. In addition, field research trips were conducted to the Nuba Mountains in the Kau Nyaro and Masakin regions of Sudan. Overall, the Nuba representatives considered the images discussed to be important historical documents that reveal and consolidate suppressed cultural heritage. The images are important for the identity construction of the state-marginalised Nuba communities within the context of Sudan’s Arab-Muslim culture. The photographs evoked memories and inspired new narratives that break down colonial racist views and bring local perspectives to the fore. The criteria for classifying the accessibility and use of the images in the Riefenstahl estate and in the cultural centre planned in the Nuba Mountains were discussed with the partners and have been largely finalised.
During a workshop, participants organised an exhibition of selected images and invited the Nuba Diaspora community in Kampala to attend. At another workshop, the infrastructure for a digital archive of Nuba photographs was established at the Pan-Nuba Council’s office in Kampala, enabling work on the photographs and films there.
A central interface for networking and for discussing the project was an international symposium entitled “Collaboration and Digital Handover: Discussing the Project Nuba Images by Leni Riefenstahl”, held at the Kulturforum in Berlin on 25–26 October 2024. At the end of the event, Riefenstahl’s digitised photographs and films were ceremoniously handed over to the Pan-Nuba Council.
The nuba-images.smb.museum website documents the entire complex research process and presents the international project’s findings. It also provides access to a film documentation of the complete symposium. The comprehensive website is available in three languages (German, English, and Arabic) and is divided into four large sections. In addition to presenting the project and its framework, the website showcases the cataloguing work carried out by the project partners in the estate’s holdings, explains the collaborative research processes and findings, and introduces contemporary Sudanese voices from the fields of photography, poetry, music, and painting. These individuals reflect on the culture of the societies in the Nuba Mountains, the current situation in Sudan, and the research project’s engagement with the archival material.
Specialist team: Dr Ludger Derenthal, Dr Valerie Hänsch, Jan Hettmann, Dr Paola Ivanov (private lecturer), Kartrin Peters-Klaphake, Constanze Wicke
Collaboration partners: Ethnologisches Museum, Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, Stiftung Deutsche Kinemathek, Pan-Nuba Council
Funded by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and Media (BKM)
Project duration: 2021 to 2024