Helene Schmitz

Helene Schmitz’s photographs aim to shed light on the relationship between ownership and exploitation of natural resources in the Nordic countries, a part of the world not usually associated with the term ‘colonialism’. Schmitz contends that the colonial project never came to an end – it only changed appearance. Globalization and contemporary technologies have instead allowed for a shift in the source of neo- colonialist projects, from nation-states to multinational corporations.

She has photographed landscapes that represent a fervent neo-colonialism where the notion of a wild landscape, untouched by humans, has ceased to exist. By addressing this through her photography, she has sought to question and renew the image of landscapes – thus allowing them to be viewed as testimonies of the human being’s relationship with nature concurrent with the global, highly industrialized transformation of landscapes. Artificial landscapes with geothermal powerplants, manmade mountains and brand new lakes – all depicted through a large format camera, a slow and ceremonious work process which renders photographs with high detail and sharpness.