BERLIN.- For Regina Schmeken the representation of movement is a major focus of her creative work. Her sequential photographs are concentrated on the decisive moment between standing still and action in fields such as football, dancing, pole-vaulting or fencing. The black and white rendition of the highly trained bodies imbues them with a sculptural quality that is reinforced by unusual compositions and lighting.

Regina Schmeken has been photographing footballers in German Football League and international games since 2004, whereby her main focus is on the players, graphically clear symbols and specific moments isolated from the complex twists and turns of the game.

During a visit to an exhibition of the artist's works, Oliver Bierhoff, former national player and manager of the German national football squad appeared surprised by this alternative view of ‘his’ field of expertise. This led to a joint project: as of March 2011 the photographer accompanied the national team to international matches and to the 2012 European Championship in Poland and the Ukraine. The exhibition depicts the men's encounter and play with the ball like a choreographed scene – viewed from a particular perspective. The exhibited photographs were taken between March 2011 and June 2012.

Regina Schmeken has been photographing in black and white since 1976. From 1980 on she has been regularly exhibiting her work and has received national and international prizes including, among others, the Prix de la Critique of Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie in 1978 in Arles, France, and in 1996 the Dr.-Erich-Salomon Prize of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Photographie.

Her photographic works can be found in private and public collections at such venues as the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Pinakothek der Moderne and the Lenbachhaus in Munich, as well as the Museum für Fotografie in Berlin. She has been documenting current affairs for the Süddeutsche Zeitung since 1986.