EXISTENTIAL STREET PHOTOGRAPHY - JOEP HIJWEGEN
Joep Hijwegen (b. 1994, The Netherlands) moved to the city, but he always struggled to feel at home within a mass, where each of the individuals in a crowd is seemingly concerned with their own life. It is though photography, that Hijwegen found a way to celebrate his unique way of feeling and seeing the world. The act of photographing gives him back the control while also inviting others to stand still and observe.
Even when observing people in public space from a close distance - be it in buses, trains or night clubs - he did not feel able to establish any real connections. At some point, observing the city felt like watching a movie, where he himself was just a passive observer - which felt peaceful and estranging at the same time.
In attempt to control his social anxiety and the constant feeling of alienation, Hijwegen started photographing his surroundings. With his so-called Existential Street Photography, he aims to focus on the core characteristics and moods vibrating from the individual and their immediate surroundings.
Hijwegen’s images, shot candidly and spontaneously, are not so much serving as documenting the world as it occurs, but they are rather intended to look inwards. The fluorescent colour pallet in Hijwegen’s photographs is directly inspired by the 20th century sci-fi movies as well as by the early impressionist painters.
The carefully crafted photographs reflect the artists deepest longings and fears, but also places of comfort. In his cinematic compositions, you might find traces of nostalgia, love, mystery, and terror - the things we usually seek in fiction, but which can actually be found in real life.
You can meet Joep's work and other 99 great photography talents on FRESH EYES book.