24 15 June 2019 I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk I subscribe 0330 333 1113
nadav kander
I’m used to speaking to
photographers who have been
recognised for a particular piece, or
a body of work, but to be recognised
for your life’s work is a different
thing altogether – a fact which is
not lost on Kander either. ‘When
they emailed my studio and asked if
I would be prepared to receive this
award, my first reaction was – do
they think I’m dead? I really did,’ he
chuckles. ‘But then googling it, I saw
that the past recipients are heroes
of the arts – so what’s not to like
about that, it’s wonderful. It also
hints at some level that I’ve been
inspirational to other photographers
and I can’t think of anything better
than that. If I get to 90 and I’m not
photographing any more but I feel
that I was an inspiration to a few
people, I can’t think of anything
that will make me feel better.’
Kander is – rather unusually –
known equally for both his
landscape and portraiture work.
What feels like two completely
different genres share a common
thread in Kander’s work – not that
he can put a finger on what that
is himself. ‘In a way I’m quite
comfortable not knowing. If I
understood it more I might stop
photographing altogether, but I find
it inconceivable to think that my
subject matter would get less
varied,’ he explains.
In terms of a preference – he
doesn’t have one. ‘I like them
equally. It’s quite interesting
that from among everybody who’s
wanted to photograph me [at the
exhibition], more than 90% want
to photograph me against the
portraits, I don’t know why. But I
certainly don’t have a preference- I did Bodies [Bodies. 6 Women, 1
Man. 2010-12], which took me two
and half years. I did that after I did
the Yangtze [Yangtze, The Long
River, 2010] because I really didn’t
want to get on a plane again. So I
don’t prefer one or the other, it’s just
how they happen.’
Immersive projects
The vast majority of his projects
tend to be similarly long-lasting and
immersive – his Yangtze set is a
prime example of it. Created over
three years and five trips, he tells
me it was inspired by the Shan Shui
style of painting, whereby human
figures are presented in sharp focus
at the bottom of the image, while
the upper half is more mysterious.
‘They generally are describing
the might of nature and the
impermanence of man, and I like
that concept a lot. I think that’s a
recurring theme for me.’
Considering the abundance of
work, monographs and exhibitions
Kander has produced, he admits
that finding inspiration is a
struggle. He will discover new ideas
in chance encounters, overhearing a
conversation or simply asking other
people. ‘They are best described as a
whim – it’s the hardest part of it all
for me. What I’m looking for is to
hear something that I go “yes!” in
my heart or in my stomach – if I’m
excited then it’s worth pursuing.’
It’s not a tactic that always pays off
though, he surrenders: ‘I once went
back to South Africa because that
sounded really interesting – what if
I went back to the place that I grew
up in, just to see what wouldhappen. I came back with a whole
load of nostalgic rubbish pictures!’
If you are unfamiliar with
Kander’s landscape work, it’s
almost a certainty that you will have
seen at least one of his portraits –
consciously or otherwise. He has
photographed an enormous variety
of different well-known faces, with
some of those featured attracting
more attention than others. A 2017
cover of Time infamously placed
the masthead to juxtapose the ‘M’
just atop Kander’s portrait of
Donald Trump’s head – giving the
impression of horns. The framing,
colour palette, posing and just about
everything else made a particular
statement, too.
That said, he assures me he
approaches both landscape work
and portraiture in the same way.
‘The kind of nourishment that a
portrait gives me and the way that
they make me feel are exactly the
same. I feel like they are a drilled-in,
cropped-in version of a landscape.
If I see a ruined building in a
landscape, when you do a portrait
it isn’t that different – I’m still
showing what it is to be human,
how we show our emotions. The
atmosphere in the pictures I don’t
think is that different. There’s a sort
of feel – what the hell that feel is, I
don’t know.’
In terms of directing his portrait
sitters – that’s kept to a minimum.
‘I always have the bones of it – I
have decided on the lighting by thatBelow: Kander’s
most recent series
is shot close to his
home – a welcome
respite from travel
(and planes)Right: Elizabeth
sitting, from the
2010-12 series
‘Bodies’. This is
one of Kander’s
favourites