Press release | Amsterdam, 32 August 2012
Esther Kroon
26 September - 14 October 2012
The exhibition Esther Kroon is Foam's ode to the
extraordinary work of photographer Esther Kroon (1966). Even at a
young age, she successfully developed an individual vision and a
characteristic style. Kroon was killed during a robbery in
Guatemala at age 25. Her legacy is a small but impressive
oeuvre.
Kroon became interested in photography after high school. A
photography class taught by photographer Rineke Dijkstra furthered
this interest. Dijkstra's photography style and search for a
personal identity in the portraits had an influence on Kroon's
work.
Kroon mainly photographed street children, with the streets and
the neighbourhoods forming the background of the images. Her photos
are moving but never move into cliché territory, which often
happens with photographs of children. The images are characterised
by honesty and openness. The children pictured are both curious and
hesitant. The hard flash and the often low perspective create
penetrating photos and give the images a rather dark and ominous
feeling, bringing to mind the photos of Diane Arbus.
In 1988, Kroon spent three months in Barcelona and made a series
of photos of gypsy children. These photographs led to the
Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst approval of her plan to create a
series of Amsterdam children pictured where they live. A year
later, Kroon decided to study at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie to
further develop her craft. In 1992, her long-cherished dream of
traveling to Latin America became reality, and she left for
Guatemala. Here too, she wanted to photograph children and also pay
a visit to photographer Luis Gonzalez Palma, whose work she
admired. Sadly, after just four days in Guatemala, Kroon was robbed
of both her camera and her life.
Foam's exhibition is a tribute to the impressive work of Esther
Kroon, who created a highly personal style in a short period of
time. This year marks exactly 20 years ago that Kroon died. The
book Esther Kroon will be officially presented on 3 October 2012 at
5.30 pm. This publication will feature black and white portraits of
children and contemporaries and a series of colour double portraits
that Kroon created with fellow student Hatta Fokker in New York.
The book was compiled and designed by Willem van Zoetendaal.
The exhibition Esther Kroon can be seen 26 September to 14
October 2012 in Foam. Open daily 10 am - 6 pm, Thurs/Fri 10 am - 9
pm. Tickets: € 8,50.
Note to editors: For information and visual
material please contact the communications department, e-mail
foam[at]foam.org or phone +31 (0)20 5516500.
Foam is sponsored by the BankGiroLoterij, De Brauw Blackstone
Westbroek,
Delta Lloyd and the VandenEnde Foundation.
Foam
Keizersgracht 609
1017 DS Amsterdam
phone: + 31 (0)20 5516500
www.foam.org