Pal Hermansen's Artist Profile
Pal Hermansen
i like artist
Philosophy Pictures provide an exciting medium through which to communicate. They speak a universal language, one that every human being – on one level or another – can experience a relationship with and attempt to comprehend. We talk about how some pictures are good and others poor, yet it puzzles me that so few bother define what they mean by a ‘good picture’ or a ‘bad picture’. What makes us stop and notice a picture? What distinguishes a good picture from a bad one in the visual melting pot of this current age? Mass mediated and private pictures, film, the web, art and popular culture melt together for most of us without rhyme or reason. To photograph is to sort out and organize impressions, evaluate and pass on bits of your own experience to others. Thus it is particularly challenging to produce pictures which are something other than copies or spitting images of things one has already seen. Unless you yourself have made certain choices and created your own ‘world order’ out of the universal chaos. First one has to find one’s own platform, set one’s own bearings. The art-critic and –philosopher Roland Barthes is but one of many who has attempted to describe the ability a picture has to fascinate; why do some pictures touch you deeply, while others do not? It is his contention that most pictures do not grab us. However, some do; they incite us to investigate them, to embark upon a study (studium lat.) of them. The majority of such pictures still convey only a simple history, and after further investigation and study, we nevertheless let go of them. However, on rare occasions, a picture has something engaging about it, a detail perhaps, some strange attraction that enables the spectator to make some special connection or association. Such a picture attaches itself to one’s consciousness and remains, it somehow emanates a punctum, a certain point. This sort of picture is the kind which ought to be the goal of every creator of images. A picture consists of two main ingredients: form and content. A lot of today’s photography builds upon the ideals of modernity, which emerged the first several decades in the early twentieth century. Within modernity, the picture’s form, the visual impression, was the all-important issue. Often it was the sole criterion to go by in the evaluation of an image. Pictures with strong form and loud colors has had – and still has today – a dominating position on the commercial market. We witness this especially in the press, fashions and nature photography. Within post-modernity, many of modernity’s ideals were turned upside down; now the content – the idea itself – took precedence. Frequently, a strong visual appeal was perceived as undesirable, to be avoided, since it easily could obscure the idea itself. What ensued was a view of images that was almost opposed to the esthetical. It led to the creation of some pictures which were unpleasant to the eye, boring and uninteresting, as seen through the eyes of the modernist – whose eyes were conditioned to value form. Today, in our era of post-modernity, these two expressions of images live side by side. Yet there is often scant mutual appreciation between the camps. Within the art community, the appreciation of form is possibly dwindling, but now modified by the influence of post-modernity. It seems to me that the most engaging pictures – from my vantage point – are the ones that somehow merge a simple and stringent, but not visually overwhelming form and a clear content. Content does not necessarily mean documentary messages, I often prefer images which have a quality of evasiveness – they don’t reveal their true selves without a fight – some quality which unnerves the spectator and takes one’s attention captive, be they images of a documentary nature, or be they still-life or stilted.
Artist's Statement
Philosophy Pictures provide an exciting medium through which to communicate. They speak a universal language, one that every human being – on one level or another – can experience a relationship with and attempt to comprehend. We talk about how some pictures are good and others poor, yet it puzzles me that so few bother define what they mean by a ‘good picture’ or a ‘bad picture’. What makes us stop and notice a picture? What distinguishes a good picture from a bad one in the visual melting pot of this current age? Mass mediated and private pictures, film, the web, art and popular culture melt together for most of us without rhyme or reason. To photograph is to sort out and organize impressions, evaluate and pass on bits of your own experience to others. Thus it is particularly challenging to produce pictures which are something other than copies or spitting images of things one has already seen. Unless you yourself have made certain choices and created your own ‘world order’ out of the universal chaos. First one has to find one’s own platform, set one’s own bearings. The art-critic and –philosopher Roland Barthes is but one of many who has attempted to describe the ability a picture has to fascinate; why do some pictures touch you deeply, while others do not? It is his contention that most pictures do not grab us. However, some do; they incite us to investigate them, to embark upon a study (studium lat.) of them. The majority of such pictures still convey only a simple history, and after further investigation and study, we nevertheless let go of them. However, on rare occasions, a picture has something engaging about it, a detail perhaps, some strange attraction that enables the spectator to make some special connection or association. Such a picture attaches itself to one’s consciousness and remains, it somehow emanates a punctum, a certain point. This sort of picture is the kind which ought to be the goal of every creator of images. A picture consists of two main ingredients: form and content. A lot of today’s photography builds upon the ideals of modernity, which emerged the first several decades in the early twentieth century. Within modernity, the picture’s form, the visual impression, was the all-important issue. Often it was the sole criterion to go by in the evaluation of an image. Pictures with strong form and loud colors has had – and still has today – a dominating position on the commercial market. We witness this especially in the press, fashions and nature photography. Within post-modernity, many of modernity’s ideals were turned upside down; now the content – the idea itself – took precedence. Frequently, a strong visual appeal was perceived as undesirable, to be avoided, since it easily could obscure the idea itself. What ensued was a view of images that was almost opposed to the esthetical. It led to the creation of some pictures which were unpleasant to the eye, boring and uninteresting, as seen through the eyes of the modernist – whose eyes were conditioned to value form. Today, in our era of post-modernity, these two expressions of images live side by side. Yet there is often scant mutual appreciation between the camps. Within the art community, the appreciation of form is possibly dwindling, but now modified by the influence of post-modernity. It seems to me that the most engaging pictures – from my vantage point – are the ones that somehow merge a simple and stringent, but not visually overwhelming form and a clear content. Content does not necessarily mean documentary messages, I often prefer images which have a quality of evasiveness – they don’t reveal their true selves without a fight – some quality which unnerves the spectator and takes one’s attention captive, be they images of a documentary nature, or be they still-life or stilted.
CV Pål Hermansen (1955, Oslo, Norway) Education: Photographic Workshop in Havana, Cuba with Alex and Rebecca Webb 2012 BA, Arts and Photography, Robert Meyer College of Art, Oslo 2004-2008 5 Photographic workshops 1995-1999 Research education microbiology, Oslo 1985-1986 Homeopathy, Oslo 1980-1984 Dentistry, Oslo 1974-1979 Pål Hermansen has since 1971 worked as a freelance photographer, artist and writer. Since 1985 he has published 25 books (both text and photography). In addition he has written and/or supplied imagery for 12 more books. Included in the NHM/BBC-book (2013) Masters of Nature Photography as one of ten world-leading contemporary photographers in the field of nature. Images have been published internationally by media as National Geographic Magazine, GEO (GEO Magazine /Special/ Saison/ GEOLino /GEO books), Conde Nast Traveler, Stern, Orion Magazine, USA, Welt Am Sonntag, The Sunday Times, New York Times, The Observer, The Guardian, Entertainment Weekly, Sierra Club Magazine, L'Illustre (Switzerland), BBC Wildlife Magazine, Digital Camera, Outdoor Photography (UK), Orion Magazine (USA), Hasselblad Forum, Terre Sauvage, Bell´Europa, Focus (Italy, Greece), Altair, Travel Holiday, Camera Natura, Self Realization Fellowship calendar, CD covers etc. The photography has also been presented by photography and art magazines in Norway, Sweden, Finland, The Netherlands, USA, Brazil, South Africa, Japan and China. Images are represented internationally by Getty Images (STONE, STONE+ and Image Bank) (www.gettyimages.com), Photoshot/NHPA (www.nhpa.co.uk) Steve Bloom Images (www.stevebloom.com) and Nature Picture Library NPL (www.naturepl.com). In Scandinavia a large selection of images is supplied by NTB-Scanpix (www.ntb.no). Membership Member of Forbundet Frie Fotografer (FFF), The Norwegian Fine Art Photographers´ Association and member of the board and honorary member of Norske Naturfotografer/ (NN) - Norwegian Nature Photographers´Association. Miscellaneous: Multivision shows and lectures in Norway, Sweden, Finland, Germany, UK, Lithuania and Spain, leader of many photographical workshops in Norway and abroad, contributed to several radio and TV-programs. Member of the jury of the international environmental photographic competition hosted by Friends of the Earth International 2006, and the Russian Press Photo competition 2006/7. Member of the finalist jury Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2011 competition, and head of the jury of the Nordic Nature Photo Contest (NNPC) from 2011. Member of the finalist jury BBC Wildlife Photographer of the year 2014 and GDT European Nature Photographer of the Year 2014. Leader of the Programme Committee of the annual Norwegian Nature Photography Festival. Speaker at WildPhotos 2007 and 2013 (BBC/Wildlife Photographer of the Year), London, the international Nordic Light Photography festival, Kristiansund, Norway 2009 and 2012, Photo festival Vilnius, Lithuania 2010, AEFONA-congress Sevilla, Spain 2011, GDT Festival Lünen 2002 and 2013, Lofoten Internationial Photo Festival 2013, Norway, Exodus Festival, Oviedo, Spain 2014, Spain Art, Salamanca, Spain 2014, Norwegian Nature Photography Festival 2014 Part of the Wild Wonders of Europe Project (www.wildwondersofeurope.com) Artist in Residence on Arctic and Antarctic voyages (Quark expeditions, Hurtigruten, PolarQuest). Solo exhibitions: Norsk Naturfotofestival, Ski, Norway. 2014 GDT Bilderhalle, Lünen, Germany 2013 Kongsvinger Library, Norway 2013 The Voss Art Association, Voss, Norway 2012 Nordic Light International Festival of Photography, Kristiansund, Norway 2012 Fotomessen 2011, Scandinavian Photographic Fair, Lillestrøm, Norway 2011 Turtagrø hotel, Turtagrø, Norway 2011 Galleri (ø), Mullsjö, Sweden 2010 Galleri VikerødegÂrden, Hamar, Norway 2010 KunstPause Svalbard/Galleri Svalbard 2009 Deichman Public Library, (2 exhibitions) Oslo 2008 Center for Norwegian Culture, Saratov, southern Russia 2008 Norwegian Parliament/Nordic Council session, Oslo, Norway 2007 Foto Sojuz Gallery, Moscow, Russia 2007 Avistegnernes Hus, Drøbak, Norway 2007 Galleri Svalbard, Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway 2007 Cfl/Galleri Mazarin, Söderhamn, Sweden 2006 (with Helena Larsson) Galleri Infra, Upplands Väsby/Stockholm, Sweden 2006 (with Helena Larsson) Väsby Konsthall, Upplands Väsby/Stockholm, Sweden 2006 Galleri Sunniva, Sauda, Norway 2005 Sauda Kultursenter, Sauda, Norway 2004 Galleri Adamstuen, Oslo, Norway 2004 Josef Sudek Gallery, Prague, Czech Republic 2003 Gallery Svalbard, Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway 2003 Galleri Herman, Lillestrøm, Norway 1993 Preus fotomuseum, Horten, Norway 1993 Major collective exhibitions: LandSkapt, land art project, Våler Østfold, 2014 and 2015 Norske Naturfotografer, Norsk Naturfotofestival, Ski, Norway. 2014 and 2015 Contemporary Landscape Photograpy: An International Perspective, Oceanside Museum of Art, Oceanside, California 2013-14 Fotomessen 2011, Scandinavian Photographic Fair, Oslo, Norway 2011 Norsk Natur, BIodiversity year 2010, Rådhusplassen, Oslo, Norway 2010 Forest, Norwegian Forest Museum, Elverum, Norway 2009 Art of Photography Show, San Diego, California 2008 Fotoloft Gallery, Winzawod Contemorary Art Centre, Moscow 2008 Natur-unser kostbares Netz, GEO + GZT, Kloster Eberbach, Germany 2007 Gemeinde Merchweiler, Germany 2007 Green Art Festival, Seoul, Korea 2007 "Fotografi 2007", Oslo 2007 World Press Photo Exhibition world tour 2006 Tiden, Galleri Infra/Edsvik konsthall, Stockholm, Sweden 2006 Edsvik Konsthall, Sollentuna/Stockholm, Sweden 2006 Gemeinde Merchweiler, Germany 1998 The Olympic exhibition, Lillehammer, Norway 1994 Major prizes: Finalist Big Picture Competition, California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco 2015 1 st Prize Concurso Asferico, Italy 2015 Highly honoured, Glanzlichter competition 2015 1 st prize Melvita Nature Images Awards, France 2014 1 st prize Big Picture Competition, California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco 2014 All-over winner, Glanzlichter competition, Germany 2014 Highly honoured, Nature's Best, USA 2013 Fritz Pölking Preis (European Nature Photojournalist Prize), + 1 commended, GDT, Germany 2013. All-over prize of the public, GDT-exhibition 2013. 1 st prize + 1 commended, BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2013 2 nd prize (runner-up), BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2012 Honorable mention (2 images) Nature and Fine Arts, International Photography Awards (IPA), California, 2012 Highly honored, Nature´s Best, USA 2010 Highly honoured, Glanzlichter competiton, Germany 2010 1st Prize Concurso Asferico, Italy 2010 1st Prize European Nature Photographer of the Year 2009 2nd Prize European Nature Photographer of the Year 2008 Howies Art think Prize, UK 2007 2nd Prize Nature, singles, World Press Photo Competition 2006 Nordic Nature Photographer of the Year 2005 (one winner biannually) 1st Prize European Nature Photographer of the Year 2005 1st Prize European Nature Photographer of the Year 2004 + several highly commended 2nd Prize Hasselblad Open 1998 1st Prize Wildlife Photographer of the Year 1993 + 6 highly commended images 1993-2001 1st Prize junior category United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), international environmental photographic competition 1974 Stipends: Norsk Faglitterær Forfatterforening 1998/2003/2006/2014 Fagfotografenes Fond 2004/2007/2011/2014 Decoration: Vestre Kjærnes Farm, TV-studio, Østfold, Norway 2015 Conoco Phillips hotel section, Ekofisk oil platform 2014 Sykehuset Møre og Romsdal, hospital 2013 Fridtjof Nansen Institute, Oslo 2008 KLIF (Norwegian Climate and Pollution Control Authority), Oslo 2007 Royal Norwegian Dept. of Justice, Oslo 2007 Store Norske Spitsbergen Kulkompani, Svalbard 2007 Alstom Norway, office premises 2005-2007 Fine arts: Represented by Galleri Svalbard and Galleri Havstad, Norway Represented in collections: Robert Meyer Collection Galleri Svalbard Preus Museum, The Norwegian Photographical Museum, Horten, Norway