ABOUT — Sarah Köster

Sarah Johanna Köster (b. 1998) is a photographer and art director based in NRW, Germany.

She strives to capture the beauty in the ordinary and to see something special in every human being. Her photographic work plays with the sharp contrast of light and shadow, oscillating between abstraction and figuration. With a keen focus on aesthetically pleasing colour combinations, she embodies an artistic and fashionable vision. Since 2015, she brings her personal aesthetic into the music industry by supporting artists, especially women, with her photography.

Sarah has already worked all across Europe and is available for travel. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Design from the University of Applied Sciences Düsseldorf and a Master‘s degree in Photographic Studies from the University of Applied Art and Sciences Dortmund.

In 2023, Sarah received the ADC Talent Award in Gold. The following year, she joined the ADC Germany Jury as a Talent Guest in the category Imagery: Photography. In 2025, she joined again—this time for the Emerging Tech and Art Direction juries. Since December 2024, Sarah is part of the ADC Germany Board, representing the creative youth as ADC Talent Chairwoman.

Sarah is available for assignments and commissions worldwide.

Exhibitions
2024: ANNELISE – Raum für Bücher und Bilder, Dortmund Kreativ, Dortmund, Germany, December 2024
2023: Kunstpreis Ennepe-Ruhr 2023: Liebe deine Welt, Märkisches Museum, Witten, Germany, July 1st – Sep 24th 2023
2023: The Faces of Womanhood: Take More Photos x Outernet London, Outernet London, UK, March 2023
2023: SPITZENLAGE: torefront exhibition in collaboration with Dortmund Kreativ, Westenhellweg, Dortmund, Germany, 2023
2022: DASA Scenography Colloquium 2022: Diversity!, DASA Dortmund, Germany, May 2022
2022: Kunstpreis Ennepe-Ruhr 2021: Zwischen Nähe und Distanz, Stadtmuseum Hattingen, Germany, March/April 2022
2021: Summer 21: Open Air Exhibition at Berlin Photo Week, Revaler Straße, Berlin, Germany, September 2021
2020: Werkschau, University of Applied Sciences Düsseldorf, 2020
2020: #ShotonOPPO at Saturn Store Mönckebergstraße x OPPO Germany, Hamburg, Germany, October 2020

Awards
2023: ADC Talent Award 2023 (Gold); featured in the ADC Virtual Gallery
2023: Kunstpreis Ennepe-Ruhr 2023 (shortlisted)
2021: Kunstpreis Ennepe-Ruhr 2021 (Award winner)

Press & Features
ADC: ADC Talents Sprecher*innen vertreten Talents im ADC Vorstand 
WDR Kultursommer 2023: Kurzportrait über Sarah Köster
Canon Europe: Education – How to make a photo portfolio: a step-by-step guide
Photographie: Kamera aus 6000 km Entfernung ausgelöst
WAZ: Wittenerin fotografiert Mode aus 6000 Kilometern Entfernung

Talks & Workshops

ADC Festival, Masterclass
Schuppen52, Hamburg · 2025
Creative Kickstart (Nicole Hoefer-Wirwas, Inka Wittmann, Sarah Köster)

ADC x New Business, Masterclass
digital · 2025
Female Empowerment: Beating the Impostor Syndrom? (Dörte Spengler-Ahrens, Claudia Bayer, Sarah Köster)

AMD Düsseldorf, Guest Lecture
AMD Düsseldorf · 2025
My Journey as a Young Art Director and Photographer

Where Photolovers Meet, Speaker
digital · 2021
About Music Photography and starting into the Photo Industry

EyeEm x Clubhouse, Speaker
digital · 2020
The Morning Show: How to start your Creative Career

Berlin Photo Week x MPB, Workshop
Kraftwerk, Berlin · 2019
Talk followed by a Portrait Workshop

Education

2020–2022: Master of Arts, Photographic Studies
University of Applied Art and Sciences Dortmund, Germany'

2021: Canon Student Development Programme
Visa Pour L'Image, online, mentored by Guido Schmidtke, Photo Editor at stern;
Group Portfolio review with Chiara Bardelli-Nonino, Visual Editor of Vogue Italia and curator of PhotoVogue Festival

2016–2020: Bachelor of Arts, Communication Design
University of Applied Sciences Düsseldorf/Peter Behrens School of Arts, Germany

Part of
Thursday’s Child Global
Talent Member Art Directors Club Germany

Let’s get creative together!

Sarah Johanna Köster
Witten/Dortmund/Bochum, NRW, Germany (available for travel)
+49 15734965987
hello@sarahkoester.com
Instagram