A remarkable new exhibition at Munich's City Museum is showcasing previously hidden photographs that document the devastating destruction of the Bavarian capital during World War II. The exhibition, titled "City in Ruins: Herbert List and Ruin Photography in Munich," marks the 80th anniversary of the war's end in 2025 and features rare wartime images captured secretly by civilian observers and professional photographers.
Among the most compelling photographs are those taken by Clemens Bergmann (1903-1973), a glazier and wallpaper hanger who was reassigned during the war to serve as a tower observer for the Munich Fire Department. Stationed on the northern tower of the famous Frauenkirche cathedral, Bergmann's official duty was to use spotting equipment to report fires to the fire department as Allied bombs rained down on the city. However, Bergmann went beyond his assigned role and secretly photographed the burning city below.
Bergmann meticulously documented the apocalyptic scenes unfolding before him, carefully labeling each photograph with precise details. His color slides capture haunting images of familiar landmarks like the New City Hall (Neues Rathaus) silhouetted against a backdrop of flames and smoke. Some photographs show recognizable buildings engulfed in fire, while others display nothing but flames against a pitch-black sky, creating truly apocalyptic scenes that are now on display at the Rathaus Gallery.
The majority of photographs in the exhibition come from the work of Herbert List (1903-1975), a professional photographer whose story differs dramatically from Bergmann's amateur documentation. List, who had Jewish grandparents, was forced to leave Germany in 1936, first fleeing to France and Italy before settling in Greece. When German troops marched into Athens in 1941, the photographer was compelled to return to Germany, eventually ending up in Munich where he began systematically documenting the destruction of his city.
List's artistic background significantly influenced his approach to photographing wartime Munich. Having previously focused on photographing ancient ruins during his time in Greece, he brought this same aesthetic perspective back to Munich, according to Kathrin Schönegg, who curated the exhibition. As an artistic photographer, List was more interested in capturing ruins rather than mere rubble, and this distinction is clearly reflected in his work, which presents the destroyed sites of the city from a distinctly artistic perspective.
The exhibition also features everyday photographs of destruction and daily life in post-war Munich through the work of amateur photographer Dorothea Brockmann. These slides were discovered in the City Museum's archives, and it was only through detective work shortly before the exhibition's opening that Schönegg managed to identify Brockmann as their creator. The photographs had been stored as an anonymous collection in the museum's archives for years.
The free exhibition is open Tuesday through Saturday from 1 PM to 7 PM, and Sundays from 11 AM to 7 PM. Visitors can view these powerful historical documents at the Rathaus Gallery through December 17, offering a unique opportunity to witness Munich's wartime destruction and subsequent rebuilding through the eyes of those who lived through these dramatic events.
