Festival Frenzy

Festival

Festivals in the Netherlands are key cultural hotspots where millions of music fans find freedom in a transitory world. In next to no time, fields and areas of natural beauty are transformed into miniature cities, complete with plastic walkways, a host of amenities and their own temporary currency. In this edition of Document Netherlands, Eddo Hartmann explores the culture and architecture of festivals, with a sharp focus on individual experience in contrast to the teeming collectivity of the crowd. Using techniques such as exceptionally long exposures, Hartmann manipulates time to show crowds that appear to merge with their surroundings. His images pick out individuals, from festivalgoers entirely in their element to those searching for a moment’s respite.

Eddo Hartmann

Eddo Hartmann (1973) is known for his work's magic-realist, sometimes otherworldly nature, which touches on social issues. His previous photographic series have focused on his childhood home (Here Lives My Home, 2008-12), Pyongyang as the setting for socialist propaganda (Setting the Stage, 2014-17) and the parts of the world being abandoned to nuclear testing (The Sacrifice Zone, 2019-23).

Document Netherlands Junior

Alongside the Document Netherlands exhibition, Document Netherlands Junior will be on view in the Rijksmuseum Photography Gallery. Document Netherlands Junior is an annual competition for budding photographers from secondary schools and vocational colleges, addressing the same theme as the Document Netherlands Commission. Nine young nominees are given a masterclass by Eddo Hartmann, Fotolab Kiekie, Irma Boom Office and Rijksmuseum staff, and the photo series they produce are all featured in the exhibition. Two winners – one vocational and one secondary student – will be announced from the top nine on 26 September.

Thanks

The exhibition Festival. Document Netherlands: Eddo Hartmann photographs festivals are co-sponsored by the Floor Fund/Rijksmuseum Fund, the Family Van Ogtrop Fund/Rijksmuseum Fund and Rijksmuseum NEXT.