Still / Life – Contemporary Dutch Photography

In Still/Life — Contemporary Dutch Photography Foam presents work by Dutch photographers that refers to a classic genre: still life. For a large group of contemporary (autonomous) photographers still life continues to inspire, although the concept has been modernized and brought up to date. Inspired by flowers, fruit and vanitas themes, the artists create new worlds in their studios, which only occasionally still show recognisable objects. Whether the end product is a picture, a video or an installation containing photography, the composition is always balanced in form, colour and light in a considered way. Still/Life does not only provide a specific overview of the work of often relatively young Dutch photographers, but also underlines the importance of emerging photographic talent to Foam during the last decade.

Over the last decade, Foam has followed Dutch photography from close by and has concluded that the most striking and innovative developments in the medium are found mainly in the world of autonomous photography. Several leading photographers trained in the Netherlands and producing autonomous work, have gained an international reputation as influential and innovative. Their work has made a huge impact on the development of Dutch photography, both in form and visual idiom. A major aspect is that instead of taking photos (as a representation of reality), today’s photographers take photos (entirely staged).

Still/Life presents various forms of contemporary still life. The show also charts developments relating to photography as a medium and presents an overview of the current climate in autonomous photography. Whether the end product is merely a photograph, a video or an installation in which photography is important, in all cases, form and content are entirely orchestrated by the maker. With Still/Life Foam challenges today’s young generation of photographers to produce surprising new interpretations of a classic theme.

Melanie Bonajo (Heerlen, 1978) graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in 2002. Her werk is published among others in Aperture, Famous Magazine, Capricious, Whitewall, the Volkskrant and NRC Handelsblad. She was nominated for the Encouraging Young Artist Award in 2003 and for the Shell Young Artist Award in 2002. Her work is exhibited in the Capricious — and PPOW Gallery in New York in 2009, Fette Gallery in Los Angeles in 2008, the AFC (Amsterdam Centre for Photography) in 2006 en the Institut Néerlandais in Paris in 2005.

Kim Boske (Hilversum, 1978) graduated from the Koninklijke Academie voor Kunst in Den Haag in 2005. She has exhibited her work in the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam and the Amsterdam Centrum voor de Fotografie in 2010, in Foam and Gallery Ron Mandos in Amsterdam in 2009. She was nominated for the Steenbergen Stipendium in 2005. Her work is published among others in Subbacultcha, Foam Magazine, Vrij Nederland, Blend and Kunstbeeld. Her work is included in the collections of the Nederlands Fotomuseum and the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Anuschka Blommers (Purmerend, 1969) and Niels Schumm (Naarden, 1969) graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam in 1996. Since then they developed into the most sought after fashion- and portrait photographers. Blommers and Schumm published their work amongst others in Blvd, Purple, Spin, I-D, Self Service, New York Times and Fantastic Man. In 2006 their catalogue Anita and 124 other Portraits by Anuschka Blommers & Schumm appeared. In 1998 they received the Best Young Fashion Photography Award at the Festival International des Arts de la Mode in Hyères. Since then their work is exhibited at several places, including Stedelijk Museum Bureau Amsterdam in 1998, Torch Gallery in Amsterdam in 2000, Deichtorhallen in Hamburg in 2002, and the Groninger Museum in 2005.

Elspeth Diederix (Nairobi, 1971) graduated in 1995 from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam, and continued her studies from 1998 till 2000 at the Rijksacademie van de Beeldende Kunsten in Amsterdam. Her work has been shown both in solo- as groupexhibitions, including Foam and Galerie Diana Stigter in Amsterdam in 2007, Australian Centre for Photography in Sydney in 2006, The Art Institute in Chicago in 2005, and Huis Marseille in Amsterdam in 2004. Her work is included in the collections of the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, Akzo Nobel Art Foundation en de ABN Amro. Her work has been published in Kunstbeeld, De Volkskrant, Het Parool, Mr Motley and het Financiële Dagblad.

Fleur van Dodewaard (Haarlem, 1983) graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam in 2010. Before that she followed Theater Studies at the Uva (University of Amsterdam). Since then she exhibited her work among others at the New York Photo Festival in 2010 and in Artpolacypse Collective Gallery in Amsterdam in 2011. That same year she got nominated for the Bouw in Beeldprijs.

Uta Eisenreich (Friedberg, 1971) studied Visual Communication at the University of Applied Sciences in Dortmund. After that she studied graphic design at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam. Her work has been published in various books and magazines, such as Kunstbeeld, De Witte Raaf and Metropolis M. She exhibited her work at several places, amongst others in Museum Valkenhof in Nijmegen in 2011 and Ellen de Bruijne Projects in Amsterdam in 2009. She regularly initiates performances, often with artist Zhana Ivanova. Eisenreich teaches at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie.

Marnix Goossens (Leeuwarden, 1967) is an established name in the Dutch Photography. His work has been shown at various places, including the George Eastman House and Aperture Foundation in the United States in 2009, Huis Marseille in Amsterdam in 2008, Fotohof Salzburg in 2007, The Art Institute in Chicago in 2005. Goossens work is included in collections such as the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam-, Gemeentemuseum Den Haag-, Fries Museum Leeuwarden-, Akzo Nobel Art Foundation- and the ABN Amro collection.

Eva-Fiore Kovacovsky
Eva-Fiore Kovacovsky (Bern, Switzerland, 1980) studied design at the Schule für Gestaltung in Basel and continued her studies at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie, where she graduated in 2006. That same year she got nominated for the de Steenberg Stipendium and in 2007 she gained a honourable mention for the Photography Award. Her work has been exhibited in W139, Galerie van Zoetendaal and Foam in Amsterdam, the Kunsthalle in Basel, the Photomuseum in Winterthur and the Higher Picture Gallery in New York. Her work has been published in Capricious Magazine, amongst others.

Paul Kooiker (Rotterdam, 1964) is a well established and influential Dutch Photographer. He had several solo-exhibitions, among others in the Museum Boijmans van Beuningen in Rotterdam in 2009, Foam in Amsterdam in 2006, the James Cohan Gallery in New York in 2002, and in the Fries Museum in Leeuwarden in 1999. Next to that his work was exhibited in several group exhibitions, such as in the Museum Valkhof in Nijmegen in 2011, the New York Photo Festival in 2010, the Fotomuseum Den Haag in 2008, the National Center of Photography in St. Petersburg in 2007 and the Maison Europeenne de la Photographie in Paris in 2006, amongst others. He already has nine books to his name. His work is included in collections such as the Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, the Gemeentemuseum Den Haag, the Fries Museum in Leeuwarden and De Nederlandsche Bank.

Anouk Kruithof (Dordrecht, 1981) lives and works in Berlin. In 2003 she graduated at the Academie for Art and Design St. Joost in Breda. She participated in several residencies, such as at the Künstlerhaus Bethanien in Berlijn in 2008/2009 and the Meetfactory in Prague in 2009. Her work is frequently exhibited, including in Foam in Amsterdam in 2006, Fotofestival Naarden in 2007, Museum het Domein in Sittard, the Capricious Gallery in New York in 2009 and the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam in 2010. Meanwhile Kruithof published five monographs about her work. In 2011 she won the Festival de la Photographie et mode Hyères. Kruithof’s work is included in the collections of the Fotomuseum Winterthur, Grimmuseum Berlijn and Foam Amsterdam.

Yvonne Lacet (Leeuwarden, 1980) graduated in 2004 from the Hogeschool voor de Kunsten Utrecht. That same year she won the Steenbergen Stipendium and the Piet Bakker Prijs. Her work has been exhibited in the Netherlands and abroad. In 2009 she received a grant from the Fonds BKVB for an artist-inresidence in Berlin. She was selected for the Festival International de Mode et de Photographie Hyères in 2010.

Lernert Engelberts (Netherlands, 1977) and Sander Plug (Netherlands, 1969) work together as an artist duo. Sander graduated in 1993 as an industrial designer from the TU in Delft and gained his MA in 2004 at the Sandberg Instituut in Amsterdam. He was part of several group exhibitions in Amsterdam, Berlin and Barcelona. Lernert works as a producer and author. He produced Driving Miss Palmen, a Dutch soap that takes place in India. Besides he was editor and author for RE Magazine. He also published Real Bad People, his first book with short stories. Together they often contribute to Butt Magazine.

Charlott Markus (Zweden, 1974) graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in 2007. From then on she was a member of Piece of Cake, an European network for contemporary art. Her work is published in De Volkskrant, Subbacultcha, en Grafik Magazine, amongst others. She assisted several photographers from 2001-2004, including Christina Rosendahl en Ulrika Walmark. Markus exhibited her work in the Gallery Spark in Stockholm and Seelevel Gallery in Amsterdam in 2009, the Irish Museum of Contemporary Art in Dublin and Huis Marseille in Amsterdam in 2010, the Chelsea Art Museum in New York and the ACF (Amsterdam Centre of Photography) in 2011, amongst others.

Katja Mater (Hoorn, 1979) graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in 2003. She continued her studies at the Ateliers in Amsterdam till 2005. Her work has been exhibited at several places, including Foam, the ACF (Amsterdam Centre of Photography), the Gagosian Galerie in Berlin, the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam, Galerie Van Zoetendaal, the Stedelijk Museum Bureau Amsterdam, La Musée des Beaux Arts in Caen and Galerie Martin van Zomeren. Her work is published in Vrij Nederland, NRC Handelsblad, de Volkskrant, Tubelight en GUP Magazine, amongst others.

Krista van der Niet (Bathmen, 1978) graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in 2002. Her work is exhibited in the Fries Museum in Leeuwarden in 2002, het ACF (Amsterdam Centre of Photography) in 2004, Nest/DCR in The Hague in 2008, and the Cobra Museum in Amstelveen in 2009. She published in Livraison, Adformatie, and Capricious. Van der Niet realized assignments for several clients such as KesselsKramer, the VPRO and the Stadsschouwburg Utrecht.

Maurice Scheltens and Liesbeth Abbenes work together as an artist duo. During the past eleven years they exhibited work in the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam in 2000, Galerie van Zomeren in Amsterdam in 2004, GEM in Den Haag in 2006, W139 in Amsterdam in 2008, Arti et Amicitiae in Amsterdam in 2010, amongst others. Their work is published in magazines such as Wallpaper, Volkskrant Magazine, Dazed & Confused, Fantastic Man en l’Officiel. Scheltens & Abbenes realized assignments for clients such as Adidas, Hermes, Nike, Tommy Hilfiger and Viktor & Rolf.

Diana Scherer (Lauingen, 1971) graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in 2002. Since then she lives and works as an artist in Amsterdam. Her work has been shown in exhibition in Galerie van Zoetendaal in Amsterdam in 2003, Fries Museum in 2004, Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem in 2006, Fotomuseum Den Haag in 2008, Fotografiska in Stockholm, Cobra Museum in Amstelveen, Seelevel Gallery in Amsterdam in 2010 and Capricious Gallery in New York in 2011. In 2006 she gained the Scherer de Gregers Nielsen Award and in 2008 she got nominated for the Festival International de Mode et de Photographie Hyères. Her work was published in Volkskrant Magazine, Capricious Magazine and Harpers Bazar, amongst others.

Johannes Schwartz (München, 1970) lives and works in Amsterdam. From 1995 until 1998 he studied Photography at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam. Now he is associated with this academy as a teacher. His work is included in groupexhibitions among others in The Dutch Paviljon at the Venice Biennale, the Maison Européenne de la Photographie in Parijs, the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam, the Fotomuseum in The Hague and the Erasmushuis in Djakarta. Schwartz got solo-exhibitions at various places, including Galerie van Zoetendaal, De Balie and Foam in Amsterdam, and the Cobramuseum in Amstelveen. In 2007 Schwartz won the Cobra Kunstprijs. His work is included in various collections, such as the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam collection and the Van Gogh Museum collection.

Ingmar Swalue (Losser, 1970) graduated from the KABK Den Haag in 1995. The work of Swalue is published in Elle, Quote, AD Magazine, Hollands Diep, en Wallpaper, amongst others. Swalue completed assignments for organizations such as the Westergasfabriek in Amsterdam in 1997, the Amsterdam Centrum voor Fotografie in 1998 and the MoMA in New York in 1999. Since 2008 he teaches at the Willem de Kooning Academie in Rotterdam.

Marianne Vierø (Kopenhagen) graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in 2005. She continued her studies at the Künstlerhaus Bethanien in Berlin in 2007, and in 2008-2009 at the Rijksacademie van de Beeldende Kunst in Amsterdam. Vierø has exhibited her work in Galeria Boavista in Lissabon and Self Service in Stuttgart in 2011, Ellen de Bruijne Projects and Huis Marseille in Amsterdam in 2010, MK Gallery in Berlin in 2009 en het Stedelijk Museum Bureau Amsterdam in 2007, amongst others. Currently, Vierø has a residency at the Triangle Arts Association in New York.

Anne de Vries (Den Haag, 1977) graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam in 2002. Previous to that he followed an exchange program at the prestigious Cooper Union Art academy in New York. In the course of the years his work has been shown in various art and fashion related exhibitions, books and magazines, including Foam, W139 in Amsterdam and the Scope Hampton Video Festival in New York. He guest curated the Arnhem Mode Biennale in 2007. His work is included in several collections, such as the collection of Foam and Photo museum Winterthur.

Qiu Yang (Beijing, 1981) graduated the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam in 2007. His work has been published in magazines such as Capricious, Livraison and Photonews and exhibited in the ACF (Amsterdam Centre for Photography) in 2010, the MK Galerie in Berlin in 2009, Photomuseum Winterthür in 2008 and W139 in Amsterdam in 2006.

Peggy Franck (Zevenaar, 1978) studied from 1996-2001 at the Rijksacademie van Beeldende kunsten in Amsterdam. Currently, Franck has a residency at the Künstlerhaus Bethanien in Berlin. The work of Franck has been exhibited in various solo- and groupexhibitions, such as the Raum für zeitgenössische Fotografie Coalmine in Winterthur, the ACF (Amsterdam Centre for Photography), Museum de Pont in Tilburg, the Museum voor Moderne Kunst in Arnhem, Arti et Amicitiae in Amsterdam and Artis in Den Bosch.

Hans Gremmen (1976, NL) is a graphic designer. Amongst others he works for the Office for Contemporary Art Norway, Aperture, Darat al Funun and Roma Publications. Recently he collaborated with artists such as Rinko Kawauchi, Elian Somers, WassinkLundgren, Arnoud Holleman, Mark Manders and Jaap Scheeren. Gremmen is one of the driving forces behind Fw: publishing house, specialised in photobooks. He is the author and editor of several publications such as ‘Fake Flowers in Full Colour’ (in collaboration with Jaap Scheeren, 2009, Fw:), ’Objects in Mirror — The Imagination of the American Landscape’ (2012, Fw:) and he has made a 5 hour long film on Route 66; ’The Mother Road’ (2012, Fw:). Recently Gremmen was rewarded the gold medal of the ’Schönste Bücher aus aller Welt’-competition in Leipzig, he was shortlisted for the Rotterdam Design Award 2012 and nominated for the longlist of de Prix de Rome 2013.

Mik Zandijk works as a visual artist and photographer and has worked as assistant art director for Tommy Hilfiger, Adidas, L’Officiel and Glamcult amongst others. She has also styled for the Bijenkorf, Wallpaper, and British Journal of Photography. Work of Zandijk has been exhibited at Foam.