Since then, the estate, and thus the August Sander Archive, has been looked after by the Photographische Sammlung / SK Stiftung Kultur in Cologne and processed from an academic museum perspective.

These are held exclusively by the Photographic Collection / SK Foundation for Culture, without restriction in terms of location, content and time.

Through targeted purchases, more than 6,000 original prints by August Sander are now part of the archive of the Photographische Sammlung / SK Stiftung Kultur.

With the establishment and sale of the August Sander Archive to the Kulturstiftung der Stadtsparkasse Köln in the 1990s, Gerd Sander laid the foundation for an institution from which the Photographische Sammlung / SK Stiftung Kultur could develop; an institution that is primarily dedicated to factual, conceptual photography in the artistic field.

One of the main goals of the Photographische Sammlung / SK Stiftung Kultur is to provide scientific support and processing for the August Sander Archive.

The prize is endowed with 5,000 euros and linked to a possible exhibition in the Photographische Sammlung / SK Stiftung Kultur in Cologne.