Bernd Becher & Hilla Becher. Becher was born in Potsdam, Germany in 1931-1934. A rare couple of artists, they focused on a single subject: the disappearing industrial architecture of Western Europe and North America that powered the modern era. Their seemingly objective style recalls nineteenth and early twentieth century precedents, but also resonates with contemporary minimalism and the serial approach of conceptual art. It challenged the cognitive gap between documentary and fine art photography and changed the course of photography in the late 20th century.