Photofestival 2012

Sept 2 - Oct 7

Museum Belvédère

Museum Belvédère

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SELECTION STARTED, SUBMITTING NO LONGER POSSIBLE
The main topic of the Noorderlicht International Photofestival 2012 will be landscape as the illusion of nature. Noorderlicht received the astounding amount of 28,578 images from 2,228 series by 1,623 photographers! The first round of selections has been made. 1,100 photographers are still in the running.  

Landscape as the illusion of nature

Mankind arose from the land, and has now definitively left it behind him. The earth has been subdued and cultivated, man has left the countryside for the city. The preservation of our natural environment is but a footnote on the political agenda.

Nevertheless, the desire for contact with nature remains anchored in our genes. The urge to travel toward an unknown horizon is stubborn. Knowing that the realisation of this desire is an illusion, that every horizon lies within our grasp and every experience of the landscape is stage-managed, in no way detracts from this.

The main exhibition of the Noorderlicht Photofestival 2012 examines our ambiguous relation with nature. Where reality proves recalcitrant, the imagination of the artist dissolves the boundaries. The photographer/auteur can appropriate the landscape to share his or her – and at the same time, our – dreams, and permit us to travel in an unreal world for a moment.

Locations

The 2012 Noorderlicht Photofestival will take place in the Frisian landscape, in interior spaces and outdoor areas. The central theme location is Museum Belvédère (Heerenveen/Oranjewoud), supplemented by Museum Dr8888 (Drachten) and the Willem van Haren Museum (Heerenveen). These new locations bring with them a challenge to find new exhibition forms and have in part inspired our selection of this theme.

more information locations >>

Possible approaches

  • meditative nature, a projection of the psyche;
  • the orchestrated landscape, interventions in reality;
  • digital-imaginary nature, where algorithms open up a non-existent world;
  • the leisure landscape, a look at the cultivated experience of nature;
  • mythic and nurturing nature, an expression of connections with traditions;
  • the sustainable landscape, protection of what still remains;
  • the guilty landscape, hidden stories behind the outward beauty.

As these examples indicate, Noorderlicht is looking for photography with a narrative or metaphorical character. In other words: not purely aesthetic photography devoted solely to recording the beauty of the landscape.

Photofestival