The title of the exhibition – “Shores Like You” – was inspired by a line from Baudelaire’s famous poem L’invitation au voyage: “Au pays qui te ressemble!”.
Shores Like You
On show at the Huis Marseille gallery in Amsterdam, Hooft Graafland’s photographs allude to the global undermining of order and beauty that is affecting us all.
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- 08 September 2016
- Amsterdam
The title is ideally suited to the work of Hooft Graafland – who often travels to distant locations where shores are the first thing that can be seen – and it applies particularly well to the Vanuatu series, inspired by James Cook’s historic explorations.
But the title also touches on today’s global migration issue, with people fleeing violence from their own countries and refugees drowning when their packed boats capsize. “I travel to remote places because of their unspoiled nature”, says the photographer, “but there, too, you see problems similar to those in the West, like climate change and environmental pollution. There’s no escaping from them.”
Ultimately, “Shores Like You” is a title that invites the viewer to identify directly with what is being shown. While Hooft Graafland’s photographs are reminiscent of “luxury, peace and pleasure”, they, at the same time, allude to the global undermining of order and beauty that is affecting us all.
10 September – 4 December 2016
Scarlett Hooft Graafland: Shores Like You
Huis Marseille, Museum von fotografie
Keizergracht 401, Amsterdam