In 2024, the Center for Photography in Sweden will celebrate its 25th anniversary, and CFF will manifest this in the fall with several anniversary programs and exhibitions throughout the country. I participated in the anniversary exhibition at the gallery at Bjurholmsplan in Stockholm with a selection of images from the Barriers project.
I make my frames myself from rough-sawn timber. I mostly use Ash and Oak, but I made three larger frames in Walnut for a recent project. The images to be framed are closeups of green plants and the work is titled “Photosynthesis”. The frames include veneered panels on the sides, and they have three recesses with two extra vertical profiles. The centered profiles are joined with the horizontal pieces with a mortise and tenon joint, the rabbet making it quite a complex joint to make.
Today, I received an email from the Swedish Authors’ Fund informing me that I have been awarded a one-year working grant. This is a valuable contribution to my practice, especially as I have begun working on my second photo book. I received the grant for my work on the book "Barriers," which depicts the transformation of the Stockholm suburbs.
Mount Koya is the center of Shingon Buddhism and a large temple settlement in Wakayama Prefecture with the largest cemetery in Japan, Okunoin. The cemetery surrounds the mausoleum of Kūkai, a Buddhist monk, calligrapher, and poet who founded the esoteric Shingon school of Buddhism. The presence of Koyasan is strong in a calming way, the towering cedar trees and the moss-covered graves ground you in an inexplicable way. The experience also makes me think about Akira Kurosawa´s movie Dreams which subtly explains the Japanese relation to the spiritual forces of the natural world.
Swedish Periodical Tidskriften Arkitektur published an excerpt from the book Barriers. The issue is titled "Ge plats för regn" which translates to "Make space for rain" and focuses on landcape architecture and the effects of extreme weather.