An Interview with Teun van der Heijden - Part 04

Book presentation © Teun van der Heijden

This is the final extract from an interview with Teun van der Heijden, the designer of Stanley Greene's book, Black Passport.

There are many conflict photographers. What makes Stanley's photography really special?


"I see it this way. At one end of the spectrum there is someone like Martijn van de  Griendt who I call a street photographer. Someone who always carries a small camera. Every moment is a photography moment. Then you have the archetypal conflict photographer. That is Kadir van Lohuizen. These are people who when they are in the Netherlands never have a camera in their hands. They research their topic and will only shoot when they are in the actual place. I have always recognized those two archetypes of photography.

An Interview with Teun van der Heijden - Part 03

Book presentation © Teun van der Heijden

This is the third extract from an interview with Teun van der Heijden,  the designer of Stanley Greene's book, Black Passport.

Why did you and Stanley Greene decide to do a book together?

"One day Kadir called. "He wants you, baby. You really have to work with Stanley because it's a unique opportunity." So in autumn 2005 I went to Paris. I admired Stanley. I found him fascinating in his long leather coat. By that time I had become curious about those people who photographed war. They always did their best to stand out from the photographers who dressed up smart when they were awarded a prize. I've always wondered to what extent that rock 'n roll behaviour is related to the goal of making the world a better place. Somehow I felt this was something to explore.

An Interview with Teun van der Heijden - Part 02

Book presentation © Teun van der Heijden

This is the second extract from an interview with Teun van der Heijden,  the designer of Stanley Greene's book, Black Passport.

The real boom in photobooks designed by Dutch designers is a recent phenomenon. Hans Gremmen, SYB, Kummer & Herrman, Mevis & Van Deursen, William Zoetendaal and Yourself are among the international elite. How do you relate to the Dutch design tradition?


"When I became excited about photography, I stepped into a world where a special relationship between photographer and graphic designer was not very common.  I knew there was a Dutch design tradition but I never found my place in it.

An Interview with Teun van der Heijden - Part 01

Book presentation © Teun van der Heijden

This is the first extract from an interview with Teun van der Heijden,  the designer of Stanley Greene's book, Black Passport.


How did you start making photography books and working together with photographers and photography institutions?


"At the St. Joost academy I was not a brilliant graphic design student. In the fifth year I dropped out because a friend of mine started an advertising agency in Oss. He thought, 'Teun is doing art school, he can help me'. In contrast to art academy this was about going to an office and just working. There were normal people that wanted you to design logos and were enthusiastic about it. I felt right at home.

Fashion &Foam

This week we'll be opening &Foam, a new concept store in Amsterdam. Every three months in this unique space, there will be a different theme based on collaborations with specific creative disciplines. The first for 2012 will be fashion. We'll be showcasing some pretty well-dressed books, prints, magazines and editions. But it's also an opportunity to discuss the relationship between photography and fashion. So we'd like to hear from you.


Who are your fashion photographer heroes? Which fashion designers and publications are making the best use of photography?


Jonathan Crawford

Amira Al-Sharif

Friday Prayers, Sept 9 2011 © Amira Al-Sharif

A few weeks ago I met Amira Al-Sharif in the Balie in Amsterdam. The meeting gave me quite a headache. How can I, as a Dutch curator from Amsterdam, judge pictures of a Yemeni photographer from Sanaa?

Ponies, Food and Colour

Mini detective, Jetseschool, 10 January 2012 © Foam

When I was in primary school I was obsessed with ponies. I read all the books on horses from my village library I could lay my hands on. I devoured every piece of information I could find on the subject. In magazines and newspapers any image with ponies on them could count on my undivided attention. In museums any painting or sculpture featuring ponies were immediately studied and questioned in great detail. I confess, I was a pony-girl.

Scramble For The Past

Foto Galatasaray / İstanbul – Beyoğlu, 05.1961, black & white negative, 9.5x14.8cm © Maryam Şahinyan

I love Istanbul. Every time I'm there, new galleries, museums and contemporary art project spaces pop up. I walked through the old Imperial Ottoman Bank (now called SALT Galata) in astonishment. Not only because of the beautiful renovation of the building (which includes two posh restaurants, a well-stocked bookstore and great library) but also on account of the exhibitions that are currently on show.

Photography's Double Act

Broomberg & Chanarin workshop © Foam

I have always wondered how artistic duos could possibly function, especially when they are photographers. How on earth do they work together? How do they find subjects that interest both of them? How do they agree on what to depict, and how, and why?

Shaped By War

It was the similarity between the derelict buildings that made me think of the analogy first. It is perhaps a little known fact that the sniper scene in the Vietnamese city of Hue in the film Full Metal Jacket was actually shot amidst some crumbling edifices on the Isle of Dogs.[1] 

Crooks

9a Scheibe, C-Print, 2011 © Sara-Lena Maierhofer

"Illusions commend themselves to us because they save us pain and allow us to enjoy pleasure instead"
Freud

I am obsessed with crooks. One of my favourite websites is the Top Ten Famous Con Men. And the film, Catch Me if You Can. Or the book and film on Jean-Claude Romand, L'adversaire. Familiar? Well, the crook or con man has been an inspiration for many artists since human kind exists. Actually, it is an art in itself to be a crook. It can go different ways:

Dora Fobert

Dora Fobert, 1942, Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin © Foam

Recently I helped to create the 24-hour Flickr photo installation by Erik Kessels for our exhibition, The Future of the Photography Museum. I was one of the lucky ones spreading out all the thousands of images on the floor of the museum. So I had the time to really look at lots of them and realized again that photography can be divided into a handful of popular subject matters: babies, weddings, cars, kittens and naked (or scarcely dressed) women. But these were amateur photographers. How difficult and dangerous for well-known photographers to touch upon such a cliché as naked women without becoming cheesy, or a Terry Richardson clone.