What inspired you to start publishing books?
As boring as this may sound: Looking at other photobooks and constantly trying to understand how they work eventually brought me to try it out myself. During this process, I also came to the realization that the research-based way I work fits the medium of the book very well, because it is able to hold the different layers of my work all together in one object.
What draws you to the photobook as a format?
I think what draws me to it is that I feel like I have total control over how my work is presented. I know that this control ends immediately as soon as I give the book to somebody else to read, but in the moment of creating, of structuring the work within its different layers and sequences/directions, it feels like I can arrange the work completely. What also fascinates me is how long the object of the book can live on and how it can also start to lead a life of its own at some point.
How has your practice changed over time?
This feels like a question you should ask me again in a few more years, haha. But for now, it is the way I look at a book that has changed. Getting into this world of bookmaking as part of my artistic practice led me to reconsider a lot of things I had taken for granted in my understanding of what a book is. Still, I am only at the beginning of this path and very much looking forward to the changes that might come. Also, I think that making my first book has satisfied some of my need to make a “proper work”, as corny as this might sound. I am happy that I am kind of finished with this need and can now start to dare to think more outside the box when making my future publications.
What's a book you've been involved with that surprised you — either in how it came together or how it landed?
I think I am just generally surprised by the longevity of a book itself. I know this might sound like a simple understanding of what a book is as an object, and I might have been able to say this before making books myself. But on the other hand, it is something I had to experience myself, I guess. Seeing where my book is going, who the people are who hold and read it, and where people put it and how they use or don't use it is something that continues to fascinate me.
What's next for you?
urrently, I am working on my second photobook, which is a collaboration with another photographer I am friends with. As this is only my second publication, I feel like there are a lot of things I want to do differently compared to my first book. It is not that I don't like how it turned out, but rather that I have the urge to try out different things. Also, my perception of what a book can and cannot do is constantly shifting, and this of course also affects the next steps and routes I take.