Guest in exhibition looks at portrait photos - a large portrait of the queen is seen next to the guest
Finished
Photo from the exhibition "The Camera and Us". The photograph of Queen Magrethe II on the right was taken by Torben Eskerod.

Photo: Malthe Ivarsson

Portrait photography: Torben Eskerod in conversation with Charlotte Præstegaard Schwartz

Photographer Torben Eskerod talks to photography curator Charlotte Præstegaard Schwarz about portrait photography as a genre and with the exhibition The Camera and Us as a starting point.

Torben Eskerod is widely known for his work with one of the oldest genres in the history of photography: the portrait. Today, we can all take a portrait of ourselves and each other with a quick click on the mobile phone. But what does the portrait really tell us about us humans? Eskerod has photographed everything from the Queen to death masks, and for him the portrait is a way into subjects such as memory and spirituality.

The talk originates from the Royal Danish Library's permanent photo exhibition The Camera and Us, and especially the room 'Portrait for the many - Strike a pose'.

Portrait photography from the series Campo Verano

Photo: Torben Eskerod

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Portrait photography from the series Cassadaga

Photo: Torben Eskerod

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Portrait photography from the series Damaged Portraits

Photo: Torben Eskerod

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Portrait photography from the series Equivalent

Photo: Torben Eskerod

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Portrait photography from the series Friends and Strangers

Photo: Torben Eskerod

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Portrait photography from the series Life and Death Masks

Photo: Torben Eskerod

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Participants:

Torben Eskerod

Torben Eskerod (b. 1960) graduated from Aalborg University (1980-1986) and studied at Aarhus School of Architecture and Fatamorgana School of Photography in Copenhagen (1988-1991). Eskerod's projects find common ground in his interest in contemplation and spirituality and is known for his portraits in series such as Equivalence, Cassadaga, Register - Life and Death Masks and Campo Verano.

Charlotte Præstegaard Schwartz

Charlotte Præstegaard Schwartz is a photography curator and research librarian with responsibility for the National Collection of Photography at the Royal Danish Library. She has a master's degree and PhD in art history with a focus on art from the 20th and 21st centuries. Charlotte Præstegaard Schwartz specialises in photography and photography history.

Organised in collaboration with Copenhagen Photo Festival

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