Monograph Magazine

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DODHO MAGAZINE www.dodho.com

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Dodho Magazine is a free independent magazine and publishing house based in Barcelona. We live, breathe and move by the passion that awakes photography in all their ambits. Since its launch in april of 2013, dodho.com has continued to be the fastest growing photography magazine, and currently has more than 500.000 annual hits.

Dodho Magazine features the best of contemporary photography, bringing together diverse bodies of work by established and emerging artists from around the globe.

MONOGRAPH #2 www.dodho.com [email protected]

Monograph´s dual mission is to exhibit and promote the work of talented artists and to provide the public with an opportunity to see and learn about contemporary photography in a more accessible milieu than that offered by website. The Monographic focused on the presentation of only one photographer and their work. The Monograph project is committed to working with galeries, agencies and other dealers to advance the careers of the artists we published.

The photographer / Artist guarantees that he/she is the owner of the rights to the images published and that he /she has obtained all authorizations or permits of third parties in which the image appears.

LILITH

Henriëtte van Gasteren

INTERVIEW

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I am Henriëtte van Gasteren (Sevenum, 1964), using the artist name Lilith. Besides being a mother of three children I am a storyteller with a passion for photography. Since 2006 my self-portraits have been telling my stories. My recurring themes have been women, vulnerability, identity, female archetypes, gender bending and of course life itself. But above all freedom and equality.

How did you get interested in photography?

As a child I dreamt about becoming a dancer: show ballet, classical ballet. I’ve been brought up in a very strict religious way and my parents wouldn’t let me. They were convinced the world of dance, of arts, is a dangerous one. It was hard for me to deal with, because I was told I was talented and I loved to dance. As I grew older I managed to live with this tough decision, because I understood my parents loved me that much and therefore tried to protect me for all possible dangers. I also was fond of writing and drawing, an alternative way to express myself.

In 2005 I started writing stories, which I published on internet. A good friend of mine gave me a 2nd hand webcam. Then I found out I could tell stories with my face and body as well. I never knew that before. I started creating illustrations (self-portraits) for my stories using that webcam. From then on slowly my way of story-telling changed. Body language suits me better than written words and nowadays my self-portraits are telling my stories. Sometimes I write a little poem to illustrate a self-portrait, but it’s the opposite now.

Thanks to photography I feel I’ve become a dancer after all, since I am telling stories using body language like a dancer does.

Have any artist/photographer inspired your art?

‘Life’ is my inspiration. My work is from a 1st person perspective but my story is not only about me. It’s about women. It’s about people fighting for their identity. Being a woman is not always easy in a world dominated by men. Being gay neither is, despite being a man. Being black in a world dominated by white people isn’t easy as well. And so on. I recognize the struggle. It’s also my intention to support the underdog with “performances” falling somewhere between the real and apparent, my alter egos holding up a dead sharp mirror in front of women and men – calling out society’s ancient convictions.I do admire Anton Corbijn, Guy Bourdin, Ellen von Unwerth, Helmut Newton for example.

Could you please tell us anything about your technique and creating process?

I photograph using a Nikon D800 or D700, a tripod, Hähnel remote control. Sometimes I use one studio light but prefer natural light.’ve created humorous, ironic self-portraits around my own home.

A house shows who we are and over 5 years I shared my home with my audience. Every corner of the room appears in my photography. In 2012 the time for change had come. For my latest series of self-portraits home owners unknown to me have offered their houses as sets. After I contacted the newspapers dozens of house owners offered their homes for my new self-portraits. I visited the houses, often without the presence of the owner, their faith in me shown by giving me their house keys and carte blanche to use the rooms as I wished. This series is called ‘A house is not a home’.

In both my life and my work I communicate with the things discovered around me so in these new and strange sites the artistic possibilities explode with sometimes surprising results. My photography changed but still remained unmistakably ‘Lilith’

Describe your ideal photographic situation I have to be alone.

How much preparation do you put into taking a photography?

Since I am telling my story through my self-portraits I photograph myself how I feel that day. It all has to do with emotions. I cannot make plans days in advance. When I enter those strangers’ houses with a small basket filled with random props I am completely blanc. I start to communicate with the environment, with the people who aren’t present at that very moment. The thing that really surprised me is that even though those house owners aren’t present, they still influence my work by the first impression I got from them. (Most of the time I paid one visit to them to introduce myself.) That fact made me wonder about freedom. Are we ever completely free or are we always taking account of others, of society and its rules, (un)knowingly?

What’s your useable-to-unusable ratio when you review images from a shoot?

That varies a lot. Sometimes the first shot during light measuring is usable and sometimes I need 30 or even 200 photos. It depends on what I am doing. I always need just one photo of a certain situation.

What quick advice do you have for someone who wants to improve his or her photography skills?

Just follow your intuition, listen to your heart and be sincere in what you intend to show the world. Stick to yourself. Being faithful to oneself makes you stronger and is a guarantee for honest work. It’s all about emotions, the photography itself comes secondly.

From time to time many photographers find themselves in a creative rut or uninspired to shoot. Does this ever happen to you and if so how do you overcome these phases?

Since I am a mother of three children there’s never enough time to photograph. That keeps me eager. So when I have a little time on my own I just start photographing. Luckily I am always inspired. There is so much going on in this world, in my life.

What future plans do you have? What projects would you like to accomplish?

I am still working on my project ‘A house is not a home’- self-portraits in strangers’ houses.

A house shows who we are. But so does a circle of acquaintances, family members and good friends. That’s why I recently started shooting self-portraits together with all those people in my life. One or two persons in a self-portrait with me. They are the most important person in every single picture and I am the bit player.

I am also working on a series called ‘Intrauterine’. Self-portraits with my Nokia cell phone in the tub. I like to take a bath, back to the womb that encircled me. Back to the fetal stage where I could completely be myself. It was safe.

A HOUSE IS NOT A HOME

LILITH

DODHO MAGAZINE MONOGRAPH #2

A HOUSE IS NOT A HOME

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PHOTOGRAPHERS AROUD THE WORLD

Dutch Art Photographer Henriëtte van Gasteren (Sevenum, 1964), using the artist name Lilith, is a storyteller with a passion for photography. Since 2006 her self-portraits have been telling her stories. Her recurring themes have been women, identity, female archetypes, gender bending and of course, life itself. But above all freedom and equality.

Lilith creates humorous, ironic self portraits around her own home. A house shows who we are and over 5 years Lilith shared her home with her audience. Every corner of the room appears in her extraordinary photography. A story in images about women, vulnerability, eroticism and much more. In 2012 the time for change had come. For her latest series of self-portraits home owners unknown to her have offered their houses as sets. After she contacted the newspapers dozens of house owners offered their homes for her new self-portraits. Lilith visited the houses, often without the presence of the owner, their faith in her shown by giving her their house keys and carte blanche to use the rooms as she wished. Lilith, in both her life and her work communicates with the things discovered around her so in these new and strange sites the artistic possibilities explode with sometimes surprising results. Her photography changed but still remained unmistakably ‘Lilith’.

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ON LINE PHOTOGRAPHY MAGAZINE

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ABOUT LILITH

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Lilith’s work has received critical and public acclaim. She has won several national and international photography awards, including in 2014 the public choice award as well as the 2nd jury prize in AVRO’s national photo contest for self-portraits. Her work is included in numerous private and public collections including museum those of the Van Bommel van Dam (Venlo Netherlands), museum Ikob (Eupen Belgium), Limburgs Museum (Venlo Netherlands), Generali Insurance Company (Diemen Netherlands), Atrium Hospital (Heerlen Netherlands), Eduard Planting Fine Art Photographs (Amsterdam Netherlands) and the Torch Gallery (Amsterdam Netherlands). In 2013, a book was published providing an overview of her self-portraits from 2006 till 2013, entitled, ‘A house is not a home’.

Lilith uses self-portraits to provide a commentary on the image of women today. Recurring themes in her work include identity, gender roles, freedom, equality, religion and the positive and negative aspects of human experience. Her work is sometimes humorous, often sensual, frequently confrontational, and always original and insightful. Her portraits, especially those of religious themes, have met with some controversy. Her self-portrait “Father, forgive me for….” was removed from an exhibition held in a former seminary in 2011. That portrait was later published on the front page of a national newspaper, Sp!ts, which deplored censorship and restraints placed on artistic expression. In 2012, Lilith made a photo documentary about Risja, a young woman suffering from Lyme disease. In an honest and realistic manner, the pictures capture Risja's beauty, her power and bravery, but also her moments of pain and sorrow. The photos have been compiled in a book (´Risja, a story by Lilith´- This is bugging me) which was released with a traveling exhibition in 2012. The benefits from the sale of the book are being provided to a new foundation, Stichting TeekOnMe, which supports research in the field of Lyme disease. Lilith’s home has served as the backdrop for the majority of her photographs. In 2012, for the series: “A house is not a home”, Lilith invited home owners throughout the Netherlands to open their homes to her to use as settings for a series of self-portraits. Dozens of people invited Lilith to use their homes. In these borrowed homes, she was able to work, in complete privacy, to combine her portraiture with a vision of home in the houses of friends and strangers. Lilith currently resides and works in the Netherlands. She has prepared a series of blackand-white portraits using a cell-phone for exhibition in 2015 (Intrauterine) and is preparing a series of new projects for release in 2015/2016.

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LILITH

ARTIST STATEMENT

People are vulnerable. They can be wounded, severely, and this is frightening. With globalization and the online revolution, our whole world can be exposed to those with evil intentions. At the same time, goodness and kindness are spreading like never before.

To me as an artist, this innate vulnerability of mankind represents the ultimate form of goodness. My art, every single self-portrait, is a form of expedition, taken one step at a time, to discover the very contours of this inner vulnerability. In this way, through my photography, I am able to rediscover and rekindle my faith in humanity.


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INTRAUTERINE

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INTRAUTERINE

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Self-portraits made with Nokia cell phone in the tub.I like to take a bath, back to the womb that encircled me. Back to the fetal stage where I could completely be myself. It was safe, when I did not know better. The hot water cherished me.

Each unexpected thing which comes my way is a test which I had not foreseen, despite my wandering thoughts about the future. The reality is larger than my imagination, but also far more cruel than my fears. I put my head under water so I cannot breathe. Maybe I do not want to breathe anymore; it’s so much to take in. The fear, the sadness, the helplessness, it is all overwhelming, it presses on my chest, it presses on my mind. Some days it makes me feel so small and weak. A day later I start to scratch and crawl and become big and strong again. Yet again I dive underwater. Try to hold my breath for as long as possible. Then the moment comes when I will be reborn. I am no longer connected to an umbilical cord. I need to breathe and live with my own strengths however difficult this can be for me. If it really does not work for me I take a bath. By myself, within the safe shelter of the womb. With fluttering thoughts until I find the courage to be born again. Until I have enough guts to live on… only then do I come out.

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