Beethovenstraaat, , 1976 Beethovenstraaat, Amsterdam, 1976 Nederlands Fotomuseum | Eye love you COLOUR PHOTOS BY ED VAN DER ELSKEN Ed van der Elsken’s colour photographs are a relatively unknown aspect of his work. In order to bring them to wider public attention, they will be the subject of several exhibitions in 2016 and 2017. A book is also to be published about them.

over 500.000 people will see EXHIBITIONS AND BOOK his colour photographs

NEDERLANDS FOTOMUSEUM AT THE PARADE THEATRE FESTIVAL,

SUMMER 2016, ROTTERDAM, THE HAGUE, UTRECHT & AMSTERDAM Stedelijk museum, amsterdam Next year’s Parade theatre festival will feature an exhibition entitled EYE LOVE YOU, showcasing colour photos by Van der Elsken never previously seen by the general public.

‘EYE LOVE YOU’ PHOTOBOOK, CURRENTLY EXPECTED SUMMER Parade museum, Rotterdam, 2016 The Hague, Utrecht, Amsterdam

ED VAN DER ELSKEN RETROSPECTIVE, 2017 Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam Jeu de Paume, Jeu de Paume, Paris Couple maing love (Vrijend stel, Edam, 1970) Couple maing love (Vrijend stel, Edam, 1970)

The Nederlands Fotomuseum is responsible for the Ed van der Elsken photo-archive. Van der Elsken was one of the Netherland’s greatest and most influential photographers. Although his worldwide reputation rests on his unique black-and-white , the last thirty years of his life were mainly devoted to working in colour. His first book of colour photographs, EYE LOVE YOU, was published in 1977.

As part of its mission both to preserve and to showcase the photographic heritage of the , the Nederlands Fotomuseum is now aiming to make this aspect of Van der Elsken’s oeuvre better known to the general public. THE UNIQUE CHARACTER OF ED VAN DER ELSKEN’S COLOUR PHOTOGRAPHY - Frits Gierstberg, Curator, Nederlands Fotomuseum

Ed van der Elsken photographed also ‘My eye loves you’. Love, colour photos accompanied by people. Or more precisely, what life and death play key roles. his own comments. He focused people made of life and what life Looking and being looked at. particularly on people who were did to people. Van der Elsken’s themes are the in some way unusual and stood He travelled all over the world sexual interplay and tension out from the crowd. He watched recording this in his photographs between men and women, the them, reached out to them, and, in the process, creating a freedom and happiness of young talked to them and took their unique oeuvre that continues to people setting out to explore pictures. Van der Elsken’s work attract international attention the world, and the experience is compelling and engaging. It even today. ‘A book about people’ of destitution in disillusioned goes straight to the heart in a way is what he called his first book old age. Around these subjects that is true of no other Dutch of colour photos, EYE LOVE he wove one long ode to human photographer’s work, then or YOU (1977). ‘I love you’ but life, composed of hundreds of since. At the time when Van der Elsken began to use it, colour photography was not an obvious choice. Colour printing was still time-consuming and expensive. In the Netherlands, it was not until the late sixties that a glossy magazine called Avenue began publishing colour reportages like Van der Elsken’s essay on Cuba (1967). He was one of the first photo- journalists in the Netherlands whole-heartedly to embrace Amsterdam, 1975 Amsterdam, 1975 colour photography. Van der Elsken had already used colour (slide) in the fifties, when he that the vibrant humanity that Van der Elsken celebrated could best be was working on his pioneering portrayed in colour. EYE LOVE YOU was followed by other books of photobooks Een liefdesgeschiedenis colour photos, even though by this time Van der Elsken’s unique style of in Saint Germain des Prés (1956) black-and-white photography had become hugely renowned. and Sweet Life (1966), although In the eighties, a host of photographers followed in his footsteps. Van both were eventually published der Elsken had blazed the trail and, at the same time, created an oeuvre entirely in black-and-white. In that was unique in international as well as national terms. the end, however, it was clear Amsterdam, 1973-1975 Amsterdam, 1973-1975 left: before cleaning, right: after cleaning MAJOR RESTORATION PROJECT

Stewardship of the Ed van der The only way to remove the The costs of such a large- Elsken archive poses a major mould permanently is to scale restoration project are challenge to the museum; the clean the pictures one by one. considerable, as are those of the mould-damaged colour photos The restoration studio at the forthcoming Parade Museum need urgent treatment to prevent Nederlands Fotomuseum has exhibition. To enable it both to further deterioration. The approx. developed a special method for save this unique colour photo 45,000 colour images all display doing this. archive and to showcase it now mould damage due to high and in the future, the museum is humidity in the photographer’s RESTORATION METHOD looking for subsidies, sponsors home in Edam. If mould is The cleaning of the colour photos and fundraisers. In addition, a allowed to grow on photographs, will be the biggest photographic national crowdfunding appeal will it gradually eats away the image. restoration project ever carried be launched in the spring of 2016. out in the Netherlands.

We are grateful to the BankGiro Lotterij for enabling the Nederlands Fotomuseum to participate in the Parade Museum.

Particular thanks go to Anneke Hilhorst, Han Hogeland and the Annet Gelink Gallery for their assistance with the EYE LOVE YOU project.

Photography: Ed van der Elsken / Nederlands Fotomuseum (Rotterdam) / Courtesy Annet Gelink Gallery (Amsterdam)

Further information: www.nederlandsfotomuseum.nl/

Parijs, 1950-1954 Parijs, 1950-1954 eyeloveyou