DESCRIPTION
These intriguing and honest portraits of contemporary youngsters breathe an intense atmosphere and are a mixture of strength and vulnerability.
In 1944 the then 14 year old Anne Frank wrote in her dairy: “For in its innermost depths, youth is lonelier than old age”. This quote struck a chord with me as it brought back memories of my own teenage experience.
I wanted to visually research whether this quote still holds. ‘Generation Z’ is the most connected generation ever. Supported by countless virtual friends and followers they are thought to never feel lonely or misunderstood. But is that really the case? Or are the teenage years today – despite all the connections – even harder and lonelier than ever?
In this quirky but poetic photo series about the turbulent puberty period, I pull the youngsters out of their digitized world and look further than their ever their ever upbeat image on social media. I think that teenage years are always an emotionally bittersweet period, regardless of the times in which you grow up. You are both child and adult sharing the same body, wrestling with your identity and your place in the world.
AUTHOR
EDUCATION:
- Academy of Fine Arts, Lier, Belgium, 2012-2017
- Masterclass led by John Lambrichts, the Netherlands, 2015-2016
- Various workshops in Belgium and abroad
AWARDS AND HONORS:
- 2e price ‘Fotonale Brugge’, Bruges, Belgium, 2014
- 4 Nominations Fine Art Photography Awards, USA, 2017
- Finalist ‘Graduation Project’, newspaper ‘De Morgen’ Belgium, 2017
- Selection for ‘Le Masterklass’, Paris, France, 2017-2018
SOLO EXPOSITIONS:
- GC ’t Blikveld, Bonheiden, Belgium, 2017
- ‘Fotografiecircuit Vlaanderen’, 18 locations, Belgium, 2017-2019
- B&B Capotorto, Permanent exposition, Petriano, Italië, 2016-now
CURATED GROUP EXPOSISIONS:
- ‘Portrait 2018’, CO, USA, 2018
- ‘The intimate portrait’, NC, USA, 2017
- Photoville 2017: ‘The Print Swap’, NY, USA, 2017
- ‘Graduation exposition’, Belgium, 2017
- ‘New Harvest 2’, the Netherlands, 2016
- ‘Photo View 2016’ Belgium, 2016
PUBLICATIONS:
- New Dutch Photography Talent 2018, GUP Magazine, the Netherlands, 2017 + cover
- Photo of the day, Don’t take pictures, USA, 2017
- ‘Life without smartphone’, newspaper ‘De Morgen’, online version, Belgium, 2017
- ‘Pure’, newspaper ‘De Morgen’, paper version, Belgium, 2017
- Catalogue ‘Fotografiecircuit 2016-2019’, Fotografiecircuit Vlaanderen, Belgium 2016
- Catalogue ‘PhotoView 2016’, Centrum voor Beeldexpressie, Belgium 2016
- Catalogue ‘Fotonale 2014’, Cultuurcentrum Brugge, Belgium,
