Rob Hornstra

Rob Hornstra (born 1975) is a Dutch photographer and self-publisher of documentary work, particularly of areas of the former Soviet Union.

Contents

Career

Rob Hornstra studied Social and Legal Services at the Utrecht University of Applied Sciences from 1994 to 1998; for a year from summer 1996 he interned and then worked as a probation officer. From September 1998 he worked for over eight years as a host and bartender at Muziekcentrum Vredenburg (Utrecht). From 1999 to 2004 he studied photographic design at Utrecht School of the Arts.[1]

Since graduation Hornstra has combined editorial work for newspapers and magazines with more personal, longer-term documentary work in the Netherlands, Iceland, and the former Soviet Union. Hornstra considers himself a maker of photographic documentaries rather than a photographer; when not photographing for a particular purpose, he does not carry a camera.[2] Further, he sees books as more important than exhibitions, and regards his own editing, publication and marketing of books of his photography as an important part of his work.[2]

Hornstra prefers to work with film, in medium format or above:

[It] takes me quite a bit of time to set up my Mamiya medium-format camera and Horseman large-format camera. And that allows me to shoot more spontaneous pictures. Yes, it sounds contradictory. But snapshots aren't always so spontaneous by any means. When people have to pose for a long time, they eventually relax. Then you can really take nice pictures of them.[3]

In 2006, together with the art historian Femke Lutgerink, Hornstra started work on Fotodok,[4] an Utrecht-based organization that arranges exhibitions and other events for documentary photography. Itself inspired by Galerie Fotohof in Salzburg, Fotodok hopes eventually to create an exhibition space for documentary photography in Utrecht. Fotodok was launched in 2008; Hornstra stepped down as creative director in September 2009.[1][5][3]

Starting with his first collection, Communism and Cowgirls, Hornstra has published his own books. These skip forewords by other writers, biographical notes, ISBNs and the other trappings of conventionally published books; by taking advance orders and selling copies directly and also working through a small number of retailers, Hornstra is able to avoid normal distribution channels.[2][6][7]

Together with the writer and filmmaker Arnold van Bruggen, in 2009 Hornstra started the Sochi Project, which over five years would document the area of Sochi (Krasnodar Krai, Russia) and the changes to it during the preparation for the 2014 Winter Olympics.[6] Hornstra and Van Bruggen express surprise at the choice of a place so close to politically volatile areas such as Abkhazia and one that by Russian standards has exceptionally mild winters as the site for such a large winter event.[6] Under the slogan slow journalism, the pair request donations from the public for the crowdfunding of a project whose scale is impossible for the mass media.[8][9]

Hornstra is represented by Flatland Gallery (Utrecht and Paris)[10] and Institute for Artist Management.[11]

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

Group exhibitions

Permanent collections

Publications by Hornstra

Communism and Cowgirls. Self-published, 2004. On the new, post-Soviet generation of Russians.[46]

Rijk: Hoe een ideaal in een kwart eeuw werkelijkheid werd: Stichting de Arm. Utrecht: Autres Directions, 2005. ISBN 9080968110. By Bram Nijssen; photography by Hornstra. (Dutch) About Stichting de Arm.[47]

Changing Faces: Work 1. Photography by Stein and Issa, Orri, Thomas Neumann, Renja Leino, Arturas Valiauga, and Hornstra. Edited by Agnes Matthias. Essen: Museum Volkwang, 2006; Steidl, 2006. ISBN 3-86521-211-5.[48]

Roots of the Rúntur. Rit Thjódhminjasafns Íslands, 10. Reykjavík: Thjódhminjasafn Íslands, 2006. Photography by Rob Hornstra, text by Rob Hornstra and Ingvar Högni Ragnarsson. (English)(Dutch) About what were previously fishing communities in Iceland.[49] (Rúntur, literally "round tour", and elsewhere a pub crawl or a drive around a circular course or even repeatedly around a single block, here means a repeated drive around the perimeter road of a village.)

101 Billionaires. Utrecht: Borotov Photography, 2008. With text by Hans Loos and Arnold van Bruggen. (English) The title derives from the assertion in the Russian magazine Finans[50] that Russia then had 101 (US dollar) billionaires. However, the book depicts not these Russians but rather those who were "forgotten by capitalism".[51] The book was nominated for the New York Photo Awards 2009[52] and listed among Photo-Eye's best ten photobooks for 2008.[53]

101 Billionaires, 2nd edition. Utrecht: Borotov Photography, 2009. (English) A cheaper edition (no gatefolds) with slightly updated text, whose publication was prompted by the news that the number of billionaires had plummeted to 49.[54] Referred to by Hornstra[55] and in reviews and notices[56][57] as the 2009 Crisis Edition.

Sanatorium. N.p.: The Sochi Project, 2009. Photography by Hornstra, text by Arnold van Bruggen. (Here at issuu.com.) The first of a series of annual publications from the Sochi Project, this booklet is about Sanatorium Metallurg at Sochi, which, like the other Soviet-era sanatoria in the area, is likely to be demolished and replaced with an expensive hotel in time for the 2014 Winter Olympics.[58] Sanatorium won the "Photographic Book" category of the New York Photo Awards in 2010.[59]

Empty Land Promised Land Forbidden Land. N.p.: The Sochi Project, 2010. (English) Photography by Hornstra, text by Arnold van Bruggen. (Here at issuu.com.) This 271-page book is the second in the series of annual publications of the Sochi Project. A portrait of Abkhazia, and of Abkhazians and Georgians exiled from Abkhazia.[60] The book was listed among Photo-Eye's best photobooks for 2010.[61]

On the Other Side of the Mountains. N.p.: The Sochi Project, 2010. (English) Photography by Hornstra, text by Arnold van Bruggen. (Here at issuu.com.) A photograph album on newsprint (tabloid format) about the village of Krasny Vostok, in Karachay-Cherkessia. On p.63 appear instructions on how to arrange pp. 3–62 of two copies into an exhibition, as was done during the 2010 European Month of Photography. Hornstra and Van Bruggen chose Krasny Vostok, on the other side of the mountains from Sochi, because nothing unusual happens there.[62][63]

One Day: Ten Photographers. Heidelberg: Kehrer Verlag, 2011. ISBN 978-3-86828-173-6. A boxed set, edited by Harvey Benge, of ten books of photographs taken on 20 June 2010, each book by one of Jessica Backhaus, Gerry Badger, Benge, John Gossage, Todd Hido, Hornstra, Rinko Kawauchi, Eva Maria Ocherbauer, Martin Parr and Alec Soth.

Safety First. Sketchbook Series. N.p.: The Sochi Project, [2011]. (English) Photography by Hornstra, text by Arnold van Bruggen. (Here at issuu.com.) Photographs of Grozny, damaged by an X-ray scanner in Grozny.

Sochi Singers. N.p.: The Sochi Project, 2011. (English) Photography by Hornstra, text by Arnold van Bruggen. (Here at issuu.com.) Singers performing chansons/popsa in the restaurants of Sochi and nearby resorts.

Notes

  1. ^ a b Profile (public), linkedin.com. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  2. ^ a b c Joerg Colberg, "A conversation with Rob Hornstra", Conscientious, 10 November 2008. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  3. ^ a b Daniëlle Arets, "Deep Focus: Rob Hornstra, Roots of the Rúntur", Behind the Scene. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  4. ^ The organization always presents its name in full capitals: "FOTODOK".
  5. ^ Fotodok. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  6. ^ a b c Olivier Laurent, "Do it yourself", British Journal of Photography, 31 August 2010. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  7. ^ Johnny Simon, "Bucking the trend: Rob Hornstra finds success publishing photo books", The Photoletariat, 17 May 2010. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  8. ^ Johnny Simon, "Bucking the trend: Blending analog photography with new media funding", The Photoletariat, 18 May 2010. Accessed 5 January 2011.
  9. ^ Reelika Lepp, "'Give us your money' – a new route for investigative journalism?", Media Kritiek, 10 November 2009. Accessed 5 January 2011.
  10. ^ "Rob Hornstra", Flatland Gallery. Accessed on 13 January 2011.
  11. ^ "Rob Hornstra's Biography", Institute for Artist Management. Accessed on 13 January 2011.
  12. ^ "Communism and Cowgirls", Fotohof. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  13. ^ "Rob Hornstra — Communism and Cowgirls", De Balie, 25 February 2006. (Dutch) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  14. ^ "Event calendar: What / where / when", What's on in Reykjavík, March 2006 (vol. 23, issue no. 2), pp. 11–12. Available here (PDF) at heimur.is. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  15. ^ Exhibition announcement for "101 Billionaires and Other Stories", Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  16. ^ "The Sochi Project goes to Bologna September 21st -October 26th 2010", 3/3 studio di ricerca sull'immagine fotografica, 2010. (English)(Italian) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  17. ^ Exhibition announcement for "The Sochi Project", Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  18. ^ Exhibition notice, Flatland Gallery (Utrecht). Accessed 3 March 2011.
  19. ^ Exhibition notice, Third Floor Gallery. Accessed 28 July 2011.
  20. ^ Exhibition notice, Freelens Gallery. (German) Accessed 29 July 2011.
  21. ^ Press release for "Changing Faces: Work" (PDF), Gomma. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  22. ^ "Up-and-Comers", GEM online, [2006]. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  23. ^ "Close encounters", MySouthEnd.com, 4 April 2007.
  24. ^ "Photography Meets Industry", GD4PhotoArt. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  25. ^ Exhibition announcement for "101 Billionaires", Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  26. ^ Rebecca Robertson, "Silverstein Photography Annual", Art News, November 2008. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  27. ^ "Exhibition coincides with new network opening", Sunderland Echo, 21 September 2009. Accessed 31 July 2011.
  28. ^ Arno Haijtema, "Slachtoffers heeft de kredietcrisis genoeg, dus ook in Rusland", De Volkskrant, 16 May 2009, p. 38. (Dutch) Available here (PDF) at Flatland Gallery. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  29. ^ Exhibition notice for Hornstra, Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  30. ^ Exhibition announcement for "The Brown Room", Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  31. ^ Press release for "Flatland at Madridfoto", Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  32. ^ "Prix de Rome", I amsterdam, 2009. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  33. ^ Exhibition notice for the acquisitions show, Artslant Paris, 2009. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  34. ^ Exhibition notice for the acquisitions show, Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  35. ^ Exhibition notice for "Quick Scan NL#01", Nederlands Fotomuseum. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  36. ^ Exhibition notice for "Art Amsterdam 2010", Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  37. ^ Exhibition announcement for "On the Other Side of the Mountains", Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  38. ^ Detailed exhibition announcement for Berlin, Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  39. ^ Detailed exhibition announcement for Vienna, MUSA, 2010. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  40. ^ Mutations III, European Month of Photography. (English) Accessed 30 July 2011.
  41. ^ Exhibition schedule (PDF), Nordic Light. (English) Accessed 30 July 2011.
  42. ^ Exhibition notice for "In Your Face", Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  43. ^ Nomination page (English) and news page (Dutch), Dutch Doc Days / Dutch Doc Award. Accessed 30 July 2011.
  44. ^ "Saul Leiter, Mohamed Bourouissa, Rob Hornstra, Christoph Draeger, Masao Yamamoto, Marie Bovo et Marion Tampon-Lajariette: Acquisitions et donations récentes: Collection de la Maison européenne de la photographie", "Photo | Agenda", paris-art.com, [2009]. (French) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  45. ^ Hornstra's CV, Flatland Gallery. (English) Accessed 13 January 2011.
  46. ^ Images from this are available here at Borotov Archive. Accessed 5 January 2011.
  47. ^ For a description, see "Rijk, a company photobook by Rob Hornstra and Bram Nijssen Graphic Design Photography", Bint Photobooks, 26 February 2009. (Dutch) Accessed 4 January 2011.
  48. ^ "Books published by the photography department", University of Sunderland. Accessed 31 July 2011.
  49. ^ For sample photographs, see "Project: Roots of the Rúntur, Rob Hornstra", Behind the Scene. More images are available here at Borotov Archive. Both accessed 4 January 2011.
  50. ^ As reported in Felix Lowe, "Deripaska eclipses Abramovich in rich list", The Telegraph (London), 18 February 2008. Accessed 1 January 2011.
  51. ^ The phrase is from "Forgotten by capitalism", Design Mind, n.d. (the first of a series of slides that illustrate the book). For an extended sample see Rob Hornstra, "101 Billionaires", Guernica, March 2010. For images see here at Borotov Archive. For an article on the book, partly based on an interview with Hornstra, see Liza de Rijk, "'Ik heb het idee dat iedereen bang is.' Rusland door de camera van Rob Hornstra", Metropolis M, 3 December 2008. (Dutch) See Jeff Ladd's review of 101 Billionaires, 5B4 Photography and Books, 4 December 2008. All accessed 4–5 January 2011.
  52. ^ "New York Photo Awards 2009 nominees", New York Photo Festival. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  53. ^ "Best photobooks of 2008", Photo-Eye, accessed 4 January 2011.
  54. ^ As reported in Dmitry Zhdannikov, "Russia billionaires' league halves in year — Finans", Forbes, 13 February 2009. Accessed 1 January 2011.
  55. ^ "101 Billionaires (2009 Crisis Edition)", borotov.com. Accessed 3 March 2011.
  56. ^ Jörg Colberg, "101 49 Billionaires", Conscientious, 13 July 2009. Accessed 3 March 2011.
  57. ^ "101 Billionaires (2009 Crisis Edition) Rob Hornstra Photography", BINT, 1 May 2009. Accessed 3 March 2011.
  58. ^ For a sample, see "Russia's last resort", London Sunday Times Magazine Spectrum, 8 August 2010, pp. 36–37, reproduced here (PDF) at Borotov.com. For more, see here at Borotov Archive. For description/reviews, see Andrew Phelps, "Rob Hornstra: Sanatorium", Buffet, 27 December 2009; and Joerg Colberg, "Review: Sanatorium by Rob Hornstra and Arnold van Bruggen", Conscientious, 4 December 2009; Jeff Ladd, "Sanatorium by Rob Hornstra and Arnold van Bruggen", 5B4 Photography and Books, 31 December 2009. All accessed 4–5 January 2011.
  59. ^ "Award winners", New York Photo Festival (English); "Nederlands duo wint New York Photo Book Award 2010", Fotografie.nl, 17 May 2010. (Dutch) Both accessed 13 January 2011.
  60. ^ A video of the book may be viewed at Arnold van Bruggen, "New book: Empty Land..." The Sochi Project, 7 November 2010. Images of it are available here at Borotov Archive. For reviews, see "Empty Land, Promised Land, Forbidden Land", Bastard Title, 27 November 2010; Andrew Phelps, "Empty Land, Promised Land, Forbidden Land - Rob Hornstra and Arnold van Bruggen", Buffet, 28 November 2010; Joerg Colberg, "Review: Empty land, Promised land, Forbidden land by Rob Hornstra and Arnold van Bruggen", Conscientious, 3 December 2010. All accessed 4–5 January 2011.
  61. ^ "The best books of 2010: Empty Land", Photo-Eye, accessed 13 January 2011.
  62. ^ Rob Hornstra and Arnold van Bruggen, "The Sochi Project: On the Other Side of the Mountains", Mutations III, European Month of Photography. Accessed 4 January 2011.
  63. ^ For images, see here at Borotov Archive. For an account of the editing process see Rob Hornstra, "Do it yourself: The making of On the Other Side...", Ahorn Magazine. Accessed 4–5 January 2011.

External links