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“It’s averyopen-mindedgaze,”sheobserves.“Ifit’sagypsy
oranaristocrat,youalwaysfeelit’sthesameapproach.The
samedignity.”Issheattemptingsomethingsimilar?Shenods.
“I’minterestedinpeople’s strengths,maybealsotheirnobility.
Imean,ithastobetruthfulandhonestaswell,”sheadds.
It’saninterestingpoint.Someofherimages, inparticularthe
beachonesshotinthe1990s,feelraw,almostexposing;would
shebeabletotakethemtoday?Sheisn’t sure,butperhaps
not.“Ifyoucompareitto20yearsago, 30yearsago,people
aremoresuspicious.Theydon’t knowwhatwillhappentothe
picture.Willitbeputontheinternet?Willitbebadforme?”
Sometimesthere’sasenseofdangerintheseimages,
Isay,abattleofwillsbetweenphotographerandsubject.
Dijkstrasmiles:althoughsheworkscarefullytobuildtrust,
sometimesoveryears,she’s theoneincharge.“Idecidewhen
thepictureisgood.Iftheywerechoosing,theywouldlookfor
differentthings.”
Dijkstra’saren’ttheonly portraitstofeature inthenewshow.
Alsoincludedisarguablythemostfamousgroupshotinart
history, Rembrandt’s “TheNightWatch” (1642)–albeitseen
aslant,viaathree-screenvideoworkDijkstrafilmedatthe
RijksmuseuminAmsterdam.Init,groupsofpeoplestandin
frontofthepaintinganddiscussit.Schoolchildrencoooverthe
cutedogintheforeground;Japanesebusinessmendebatethe
painter’sprofitmargin.Twentysomethingsflirtwhilewrangling
overitssymbolism.
ForDijkstra,thisisawaynotonlyoffacingupto
Rembrandt,butanexplorationofwhatportraitsarereally
about.We’relookingatpeoplelookingatpeople;anice
circularity,shereflects, andatestamenttothepowerand
mysteryoftheform.“WithRembrandt,itfeelssoreal,”
shesighs.“Icanonlybejealous.”“RinekeDijkstra” is at theMarianGoodmanGallery,London,
fromMarch12to April 25;mariangoodman.com‘NightWatching’, Dijkstra’s2019video installation of peoplelookingatRembrandt’s‘The NightWatch’‘The Grandchildren of DeniseSaul, NewYork, October 15 2012’©RINEKEDIJKSTRA. COURTESY OF THEARTISTAND MARIAN GOODMAN GALLERYNEW YORK,PARIS ANDLONDON