Joakim eskildsen photographer
JOAKIM ESKILDSEN
Joakim Eskildsen (Copenhagen ) is a Danish photographic artist with a particular interest for nature as well as social and political themes, eager to understand the world he lives in. His work is shown internationally in museums, galleries, and art fairs. Born in Copenhagen in where he trained with Royal Court photographer Mrs. Rigmor Mydtskov, he was educated at the Aalto University (formerly University of Art and Design) in Helsinki where he learned the craft of bookmaking with Jyrki Parantainen and Pentti Sammallahti.
Joakim has produced several monographs of his work including Nordic Signs (), Bluetide (), iChickenMoon (), The Roma Journeys (Steidl ), American Realities (Steidl ) and Cornwall (), a poetic photographic study of the county.
The monograph Cuban Studies, the result of extensive journeys through Cuba to investigate the changes the country is facing, will shortly be released by Steidl Publishers (). Joakim is currently working on his long-term project Home Works begun when his first child was born, as well as on his most recent project focusing on the eco-sociologic challenges of his immediate surroundings: Nothing Special.
The feature film Nothing Specialby Martin Zarka can be seen following this link: Nothing Special
“Eskildsen’s photographs are nothing short of impeccable”, critics have said. “Hopeful, moving or affected, artistic and documentary, Joakim Eskildsen’s photographs never accuse; they privilege empathy and dignity, with a respectful aim to portray the invisible, those that society tends to forget.“
EXHIBITIONS (selected)
Fotomuseum Winterthur | The National Museum of Photography, Copenhagen | Nikolaj Copenhagen Contemporary Art Center, Copenhagen | Nivågaards malerisamling | Gammel Holtegaard | Skagens museum | Museet for fotokunst, Odense | Kulturhuset, Stockholm | Strandverket, Marstrand | Kristianstads museum | Landskrona konsthall | The Sten- ersen Museum, Oslo | Perspektivet Museu
Joakim Eskildsen (born , Copenhagen) lives in Germany. He began taking photographs at an early age and trained as an apprentice with Rigmor Mydskov, the Royal Photographer to the Danish Court, before moving to Finland to study photographic book making at the Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture, Helsinki, where he graduated in with an MA in Photography.
His earliest published series, Nordic Signs, , is a photographic work on Northern Europe, a hymn to nature, and the people who live in it. The photographs were made in Norway, Scotland, Denmark, Sweden, Iceland and the Faroe Islands. 'Nordic Signs — I think I have a sense of them here, something which is wild and yet inhabitable, but with a strong sense of weather, and wind, and destiny'. (Joakim Eskildsen)
Eskildsen is one of the most notable documentary photographers of his generation, demonstrating in his work an innate sense for capturing an intimacy with his subjects. His ability to focus on the centre of what he feels is the essential element in a given picture, lends it a life of its own. His work has evolved around his many photographic journeys, which have been documented in monographs often depicting communities on the fringes of society. Roma Journeys (introduction by Gunter Grass) was a seven-year project that followed the Roma people's movement from India to the Nordic region. Working in collaboration with his wife, the poet Cia Rinne, the book set a new standard in how we interpret a community that has been culturally isolated by the western world for centuries. Other monographs published include: Nordic Signs ; Bluetide ; iChickenMoon ; American Realities ; Cornwall and Home Works
Eskildsen's work has been exhibited extensively around the world in both solo and group exhibitions, including a retrospective at the National Museum of Photography, Joakim Eskildsen Joakim Eskildsen lives in Germany. He began taking photographs at an early age and trained as an apprentice with Rigmor Mydskov, the Royal photographer to the Danish Court, before moving to Finland to study photographic book making at the Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture, Helsinki, where he graduated in with an MA in Photography. Joakim Eskildsen is one of the most notable documentary photographers of his generation, demonstrating in his work an innate sense for capturing an intimacy with his subjects. His ability to focus on the centre of what he feels is the essential element in a given picture, lends it a life of its own. His work has evolved around his many photographic journeys, which have been documented in monographs often depicting communities on the fringes of society. Eskildsen's work has been exhibited extensively around the world in both solo and group exhibitions, including a retrospective at the National Museum of Photography, Copenhagen. His work is held in public collections including the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma, Helsinki; Fotomuseum, Winterthur; The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.Peter Holliday speaks to the Danish photographer Joakim Eskildsen about his three-decade long career and the deep connections he has forged along the way. They touch on many topics, including Joakim’s current show at the Fotografisk Center in Copenhagen as well as his experience making a book with Steidl. They also discuss the meaning of home and consider what the 19th century Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard can teach us about the nature of beauty. Joakim also discusses his formative years as a student in Finland and shares the experience of his encounter with Finnish photographers including Ritva Kovalainen, Pekka Turunen, Pentti Sammalahti and Jorma Puranen, as he considers the impact these mentors have had on his approach to image-making.
My interest in photography started when I was fourteen years old. My brother had learned to print pictures at school, and we both tried to make it work at home in our garage. The pictures were grey and blurred, but nevertheless, I felt it was exceptional, and from that day on, I knew that I wanted to be a photographer.
I grew up in the countryside, and nature has always been my great interest. My grandmother lived in a two hundred year old house. She used to tell me stories about her childhood in Sweden. Her garden was an adventure in itself, there was always plenty to do; chopping wood, digging up potatoes, cutting trees, painting the house, picking apples, flowers and strawberries. She got water from a well, and a telephone very late. At her house, everything was understandable. The fire gave warmth, the house gave shelter, and the sky gave sun and rain.
Since I started photographing, certain themes have recurred in my work. One of them is human existence in relation to nature. Before I started photographing, I used to collect all sorts of things: coins, labels, cow horns. I realized that the obsession with photography is closely related to the collector’s mind. From the very beginning, I w