Venice – Venezia – magic and enigmatic to people around the world, particularly those interested in art, history, film and architecture.
It’s the unique city that has some 50 000 permanent inhabitants but annually hosts some 30 to 40 million visitors from all over the world.
It’s both genuine and artificial.
And it is the city built without streets, only canals and boat traffic. It must be saved by the world – from excessive tourism, from corruption and from sinking.
Because it is a jewel in the eyes of the whole world.
And for me? Well, there are three inroads to Venice.
My art collecting parents went to the Biennale. As a child, I heard about it and saw pictures from the St Mark Square with the Basilica and all the pigeons. I’ve visited every year since 2007 to see the Biennale – and also out-of-season to take photos. And Venice has so much to offer, whether or not the Biennale is on … I 🧡 Venice!
Secondly, my wife and I always visit the European Cultural Center’s Palazzo Mora, and I remember that I said to her while we explored the 2015 exhibition: Wow, if I could just once exhibit in this immensely beautiful palace with so many and diverse artists from around the world!
The year after and to my utter surprise, I was invited by its founder, Rene Rietmeyer, and made it to the 2019 exhibition with my Silk Peace Art Road, SPAR, Installation.
Thirdly, my Danish photography mentor, Viggo Rivad, went there several times and produced a magic photo book – Fra Venedig (From Venice) with mostly black-and-white photos but also some bluish-toned – accompanied by 9 texts by Mark Hebsgaard, (Rhodos Publishing, Copenhagen 1980). See some of Rivad’s photos here on the homepage I’ve created for him.
He was both proud and happy about his Venice shots which were anything but tourist-like. And I’ve taken his book with me to Venice and then taken some photos where he stood when he shot some of his, even imitating his motive and angle – big difference both because he was a genius while I am not and because technology has changed so fundamentally since then.
However, towards the end of his life, I happened to shoot a rather “Rivad-esque” photograph (although not black-and-white like most of his) very early on a January morning (Viggo also often went out early to get that enigmatic and perhaps foggy atmosphere).
I printed it on the best paper I could find and gave it to him as a present. He looked at it and then he said – “I would have been proud had I taken that picture.”
As a self-taught image-maker I felt that, perhaps, I could now justify calling myself a photographer. It was this photo:
… and my own 60 years later
I love to stroll just around and – get lost. I don’t have “projects” or something I systematically do to end up with a cohesive portfolio. I experiment with motives, types of expressions, iPhone apps, black-and-white versus colours, and with times of the day. Since Venice is one of the most photographed cities in the world – there are innumerable photo books over many decades – I probably bring nothing new. Some may even find my images “touristic”…
All I can say is that this is the Venezia I have seen and want to explore much more in years to come. I have so many more Venice photos than those here and in the shop. Write to me if you are interested in something specific.
Most of these – and others – are available in the Venice shop.
And there are 5 works from Venice also in the Art Photograpics Shop.
And oh! Remember to move your cursor over each image to see its details.
Continue to explore or go to the Venice print shop
Now go to the shop, explore and buy Venice images to your heart’s desire. You’ll find prints in different sizes on the world’s finest papers, limited editions, printed by me, numbered and signed – and delivered to you with a certificate of authenticity.
This portfolio was created in July-August, 2020