INTERVIEW #6 - AUGUST 2015 FOR YES WE ARE MAGAZINE
JENNY METELERKAMP aka FARMFRESH -PHOTOGRAPHER-
Centred on portraits, moody scenes of daily life, always composed, mainly monochromatic, often intensely, with a superb image quality, Jenny Metelerkamp aka Farmfresh also is one of the rare ones nowadays, among the ones I know, to keep on using sepia, without any heaviness. Based in South Africa, she shows a real attention to human beings (and to dogs), trying to see all the sides of her country (opening towards the two main communities) though she never politicizes her posts but presents a calming vision, far from turmoil, trying to find a piece of harmony. One of the first persons I discovered when I arrived on Blipfoto at the start of 2 014, with also, an excellent language level and a capacity to share.
-Is the abstract direction something very strange for you ? How, when and why did you include an abstractized part in your photography ?
Outside the Post Office
-Why this predominance of mono- -How would you describe humanism ? chromes in your photography ? Monochromatic work makes my heart sing; it’s as simple as that. Firstly, it calms me down by taking away the distraction of colour (I’m easily distracted), and secondly, the absence of distraction helps distil the mood of the picture. This, in turn, excites me. So, calming and exciting, both at once. Of course, it’s because I’m after the still, moody picture that it works for me.
You’ve thrown a new word at me here, Basile: ‘humanism’. ‘a rationalist outlook or system of thought attaching prime importance to human rather than divine or supernatural matters.’ Hmm! Didn’t know the word existed.
I admire images that shift away from representation and realism. A world of possibilities opens up. Ultimately I would like to include more blur and pictorial movement in my work, along with oblique concept. Not wholly abstract pieces, but more than a few degrees away from realism. Neutral density filters and judicious panning might play a role here. I make a lot of use of reflections to help distort objects, or simply to make them less recognisable. The dirtier the glass, window or mirror the better! ‘Part of the picture’, as an example, is a semi-nude taken through an indoor window; the window’s reflections instantly give me more layers in front of the subject, which serve to integrate the subject with her surroundings, much as one
would when softening or losing the edges in a portrait painting, or coaxing background colour into the foreground in, say, a landscape.
-How would you describe the link between your photo production and your environment ? My immediate environment – my bedroom, my home, the farm – has come to play a huge part in my images. There was a time when I gave it little thought, but now I purposely include bits and bobs in the picture to embed the subject in its surroundings and add to the narrative. These choices may stem from becoming more aware of the composition in its entirety, as well as valuing the enrichment that context provides.
-How are you South African ? South Africa, and Africa herself, will always inform the way I see things. We live in a rich, complex, sensitive, earthy corner of the world. I am acutely aware of the daily people-to-people interactions, how vital and important they are, and I choose carefully how I might depict them, whether it be with the face of dignity or soulfulness, resignation or hope. Above all, I hope to show respect to my subjects and have that apparent in the images.
-Does the web world bring improvement to your vision ? Undoubtedly. It’s a huge source of inspiration, and even more so because I live in a rural valley in a far-flung country. Half the pleasure of photography is in the doing, the other half is in the soaking up of a smidgeon of the brilliance out there.
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Y o o
-What is the importance of your daughter in your photography ? I couldn’t ask for a better subject. My daughter ignores the camera and carries on with whatever she’s doing or saying, perfectly naturally. No ‘camera face’ is ever pulled, and no coyness or shyness surfaces. I’m not saying that would be wrong, it’s just that her attitude makes it a whole lot easier for me to get my photograph. She is my brush with the tenderness of youth, and freshness, and time passing way too quickly. All too soon she will gone.
Promise of Rain
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