event

Book launch
Metamoderne Fotocultuur

On Friday 2 October, photographer, writer, and editor Ton Hendriks will present his book Metamoderne Fotocultuur (Metamodern Photo Culture) at the Foam café. During the evening, he will discuss the book’s central ideas and arguments with Foam curator Aya Musa.

What role can—and should—photography play in a world where democracy is under pressure? How can photography, as a visual storyteller, navigate between realism and subjectivity, between mimesis and metaphor? Why is visual storytelling the photographic form of the future? And why is it necessary to redefine photography as an art form and develop a new theory around it?

Portrait © Hans de Kort

About the publication & the event

In this book, Ton Hendriks examines photography’s role in a turbulent society where undemocratic forces are gaining influence. Through an analysis of the photographic image, he shows how its perceived realism can also leave room for imagination and personal expression. Historical styles are explored as visual codes embodying underlying ideologies.

Ton Hendriks studied philosophy before establishing himself as a photographer. He has realised various documentary projects, including Global Street Child, which was also published as a book. He wrote Beeldspraak, a theoretical book on photography that is used as a textbook at art academies and photography schools. He has also taught at photography schools and lectured on photography and visual culture. He is currently editor-in-chief of Pf Fotografie Magazine.

Aya Musa is a curator at Foam and previously worked as a curator and programmer at the Nederlands Fotomuseum. Since 2001, he has researched sectarian violence in the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent as an investigative journalist and visual ethnographer.

The book Metamoderne Fotocultuur will be available for purchase at the Foam bookshop after the event.