RARITIES IN PICTURES

Long before my focus on museum photography, and continuing parallel to it, I have continuously worked with imagery using more or less heavy digital manipulation and montage for both still and moving results. Whilst the origin of the images is always photographic, these montages take away the emphasis on the photographic moment and the intertwined referral to fragments of reality. In other words, the indexical quality of photography -that knowledge of proof that something depicted in a photographic image had to be there in front of the lens at the moment of the taking of the photograph- is much reduced or wholly eliminated.

Thematically, an overarching theme here is a reflecting on what it means in today's world to be a body and a human being with a special focus on the concept of the 'mind'/'soul' and 'body' separation. This includes to look at representations of both 'body' and 'mind' in various cultural spheres including modern media and of course art itself. I am interested in the cathartic role of art and in the extent to which modern (social) media also fulfill a certain role of catharsis (or not).

I am much inspired by non-contemporary historical art, both for form and content, whereby my own interpretation of 'content' is a reflection on iconography that aims to point out aspects of its timeless and hence contemporary relevance. I am a fan of Baroque Memento Mori imagery and love a sense of the absurd. This interest in historic art was also the starting point that led to my preoccupation with museum spaces.

Often, I use myself as 'model' - not necessarily aiming to produce self-portraits or comments on my personal life but rather considering this practice as using the most universal subject an artist can find. In some series, I have worked with found photography (Body & Soul, Gebluet) and later introduced purpose made photography into this (The Picture of Discobulus, Triumphal Arch).

PS: I have adopted the title 'Rarities in Pictures' from a section of Sir Thomas Browne's MUSÆUM CLAUSUM, which describes in words a collection of interesting sounding but non-existing pictures.