CvD: One of the powerful things about your body of work The Caspian, which is currently on view at Foam, is on one hand the story or the landscape and the deterioration of the water and coastal areas, and the stunning portraits that you have taken. To me these are a testament to who you are as a person and how your run your practice: personally and sincerely committed. Can you elaborate on what this body of work means to you and how it ties into any new or upcoming projects you are working on? 

KJ: For me, “long-term” doesn’t only refer to the amount of time we spend on a project. It’s also about how it grows, evolves, and takes on different forms over the years. The Caspian  began with a simple curiosity: to get close to the people of the Caspian, to understand their lives. Over time, it shifted from being “a small photo reportage” into something more like a visual investigation— into my own landscape, culture, and environment. I no longer think of myself just as an artist but as a visual investigator. The death of the Caspian, the largest lake on the planet, is not only personal for me—it’s also, I believe, the most urgent environmental issue of our time. 

CvD: You have worked in many different places, countries and environments in your artistic career. Is a studio or a physical space important to you in your practice? 

KJ: Honestly, NO! A studio or physical space has never been essential to me. Even the photo you see here of my “studio” is simply my home, nothing extraordinary. The real heart of my work happens when I’m meeting people, listening to them, and trying to understand their perspective. The rest—the scanning, editing, reviewing—is secondary. I’ve worked everywhere: from the lobby of a hotel with a cup of tea, to the seaside, to my living room. What matters most is the encounter, not the space. 

CvD: You have been working on The Caspian for about ten years. You started this body of work (and correct me if I'm wrong!) initially to document the deterioration of the Iranian shoreline of the Caspian, culturally, economically and ecologically. As we have spoken a lot about your work in the months leading up to the exhibition, it became clear that gradually you embraced different media and forms to shape the various stories you are sharing from the regio, resulting in a powerful multi-layered narrative in the exhibition at Foam.

Could you elaborate on the different mediums or photographic processes you have used/ use (archival/ AI/ documentarian/ collages) and if or how each form is important to the story you want to share? 

KJ: You are right that this project has grown across many layers and mediums. I have experimented with archival material, collage, AI, and sound design. At some point, I stopped caring about producing what is conventionally considered “good photography.” Instead, I tried to approach things with sensitivity, with naivety even—allowing myself to be surprised by what I encountered. This shift made the project less about photography itself and more about a state of being. 

The Caspian is no longer just a body of work for me—it has become my life mission. It carries a responsibility. I follow the Caspian, let it reflect on my soul and memories, and then search for forms that can communicate its story across different cultures, languages, and geographies. I feel I can easily sacrifice the form for the message. The form can change, but the message remains. 

KHASHAYAR JAVANMARDI received a degree in Art and Architecture from the University of Guilan, Iran, and graduated in Photojournalism from the Danish Media and Journalism School (DMJX) in 2020. He also studied photojournalism at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Hannover, Germany. At age 19 he started working for Jam Photo Agency in Iran. Javanmardi received the Iranian Emerging Talented Photographers of the Year Award three years in a row. His work has been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Guardian. He also worked for Reuters and various Iranian publications. Khashayar Javanmardi is the founder of Mamaat Art Collective and the official photographer for Plateforme 10: the new art district in Lausanne, Switzerland.   

CLAARTJE VAN DIJK is Senior Curator at Foam Photography Museum in Amsterdam where she curated various exhibitions, including The Underground Camera (2025), Felipe Romero Beltrán - Dialect (2024), Ara Guler - A Play of Light and Shadow (2023), Mous Lamrabat - Blessings from Mousganistan (2022) and Liz Johnson Artur - of life of love of sex of movement of hope (2021). Previously, Van Dijk worked at the International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York in different capacities for twelve years. At ICP she conducted research on the museum’s collection and was a (co-)curator on numerous exhibitions, including Elliott Erwitt: Pittsburgh (2018) and Your Mirror: Portraits from the ICP Collection (2019), collaboration with Erin Barnett. Van Dijk writes for Foam Magazine and co-authored the catalogue Ara Guler - A Play of Light and Shadow (Hannibal, 2023). She has performed mentorships for the School of Visual Arts (SVA) and was a nominator for a number of awards including The Lucie Foundation, BJP International Photography Award and Prix Pictet. Claartje van Dijk lives and works in Amsterdam.