Federal Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has appointed Florian Ebner, Director of the Photographic Collection of Folkwang Museum Essen, Curator of the official German contribution to the 56th Venice Art Biennale in 2015. The appointment was made on the basis of a recommendation by the Federal Foreign Office Art and Exhibitions Committee, which includes art experts and the directors of leading museums.

The international exhibition “La Biennale di Venezia”, which takes place every two years, is one of the most important international forum for contemporary visual arts. The Federal Republic of Germany traditionally makes a national contribution commissioned and largely co‑financed by the Federal Foreign Office.

The Federal Foreign Office thus makes a major contribution both towards a vital arts scene in Germany and towards worldwide cultural exchange. A key aim of cultural relations and education policy, namely to present Germany abroad as a country with a world‑renowned and diverse art and cultural scene, is thus met. The German contribution will be realized in cooperation with the Stuttgart‑based Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations (ifa).

Florian Ebner was born in Regensburg in 1970. He studied photography at the École Nationale Supérieure de la Photographie in Arles, as well as art history, history and Romance languages at the University of Bochum. From 2008 to 2009, he was Acting Director of the Photographic Collection of the Berlinische Galerie – Museum of Modern Art. Thereafter, he worked as Director of the Museum of Photography in Braunschweig. In November 2012, he became Director of the Photographic Collection of Folkwang Museum Essen.