Architecture Photography

Sagrada Familia, famous Catalonian (Spanish) church in Barcelona, by architect Antonio Gaudi

I just love buildings. And people. To me a good architecture photoseries also has people in it every once in a while. People inhabit the building, use it, live in it. Change it. They leave traces behind, which I try to collect in my Traces Of Silence series.

But finally I've also made a webpage for my commissioned architecture photography and just put online. Not too fancy, but "living" images, as I want to prove that an image of a building can be more than the usual commercial perfect photo. I want traces of people visible in it. And lucky for me, architects do agree and book me for different architecture photography now.

Sometimes I am asked to do a series about buildings being demolished , before & after pictures. I am asked to make a photobooks too, which by using Blurb is easy and afordable. No fancy & big advertising budget necessary, just good photos will do.

Geeren-Zuid, Traces Of Silence

Photoseries made in the summer of 2009, when over a 100 houses were demolished to make room for new and modern housing for Singelveste Alleewonen Corp. from Breda. The photobook is OUT NOW and can be previewed & ordered worldwide.

I make a lot of photobooks, even did another one about the same houses, and this book shows only my crossed E6 technique pictures in vivid colors of Kodak chrome (slide) film. Just love to use analog photography now and then.

It all started in 1994-1995 when I was still studying at the Academie of High Arts the St. Joost in Breda. I was curious about the Schilderswijk in Den Haag/the Hague and made my first urban exploring type images.
Schilderswijk, Den Haag, 1994-1995

The abandoned ball is the symbol of the people who had to leave their houses and move, as the old buildings were torn down to make room for new, modern housing.

I discovered during this period that I am indeed a documentary photographer, who's not just covering a (news)story, but wants to personalize the images, make fine art portraits of the people who are in my photograph. I never stopped doing this kind of photography, and still love to go to empty buildings
and abandoned places and just wander around. "Breda, my city" Breda Photo 2003, first ever publication (small photobook B&W printed by Salsedo drukkerij Breda)