Tomas van Houtryve is a Belgian visual artist,[1] director and cinematographer[2] working mainly with photography and video. He is an Emeritus member of the VII Photo Agency,[3] and a Contributing Artist for Harper's Magazine.[4]

Tomas van Houtryve in 2022

Life and career edit

Van Houtryve attended a university in Nepal, studying philosophy. He became internationally known for his photographs of the Maoist rebellion in Nepal, winning the Visa pour l'Image Ville de Perpignan award in 2006[5] and the Bayeux Calvados-Normandy Award for war correspondents in 2006.[6]

Van Houtryve next embarked on a seven-year photographic project to document life in the last countries where the Communist Party still remained in power: North Korea, Cuba, China, Nepal, Vietnam, and Laos. In 2010 he was named Photographer of the Year[7] in the Pictures of the Year International Competition. A monograph of the work titled Behind the Curtains of 21st Century Communism was published in 2012.[8]

Van Houtryve then turned his interest to the US military's use of surveillance drones with a series titled Blue Sky Days.[9] Supported by a Getty Editorial Grant of $10,000,[10] he used his own modified drone in the US to explore the implications of surveillance techniques used by the US both outside and within its borders.[11][12] For this work, van Houtryve was awarded the 2015 International Center of Photography Infinity Award[13] and a second prize World Press Photo award.[14]

In 2016 van Houtryve received a grant from the Pulitzer Center to create a video installation about the European refugee crisis.[15] The work was exhibited at Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Photography[16] the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art[17] and C/O Berlin.[18] Extracts from the project were published in a 2021 book by Steidl[19] and by The New Yorker.[20] In 2017, the video installation was acquired for the permanent collection of the International Center for Photography with funds provided by Marjorie and Jeffrey Rosen.[21]

Van Houtryve was selected for the inaugural CatchLight Fellowship in 2017 and granted $30,000[22] for a project titled Lines and Lineage. The work explores America's collective amnesia of history, addressing the missing photographic record of the period when Mexico ruled what we now know as the American West. Van Houtryve photographed the region with glass plates and a 19th-century wooden camera.[23] He paired portraits of direct descendants of early inhabitants of the West—mestizo, Afro-Latin, indigenous, Crypto-Jewish—with photographs of landscapes along the original border and architecture from the Mexican period.[24] The work earned van Houtryve France's 2019 Roger Pic Award.[25] A monograph of the work was published in 2019 by Radius Books.[26] The book was adapted into a one-hour documentary by French television, co-directed by van Houtryve and Mathilde Damoisel.[27] The film was first broadcast in France in 2022.[28] It premiered in the United States with a screening at the Taos Center for the Arts under the title Far West – The Hidden History in 2022.[29]

In 2022, van Houtryve's aerial drone photograph of Notre-Dame de Paris was featured on the cover of National Geographic Magazine.[30]

Public collections edit

Van Houtryve's work is held in the following public collections:

Books edit

  • Behind the Curtains of 21st Century Communism. Photographs of Nepal, North Korea, Cuba, Moldova, Laos, Vietnam, and China, Éditions Intervalles, Paris 2012. ISBN 978-2-916355-65-8. Preface by Tzvetan Todorov.
    • La Lutte continue: voyage dans les communismes du XXIe siècle. Paris: Éditions Intervalles, 2012. ISBN 978-2-916355-64-1. French-language version.
    • Geschlossene Gesellschaften: eine fotografische Reise durch kommunistische Länder. Bern: Benteli, 2012. ISBN 978-3-7165-1714-7. German-language version.
  • Lines and Lineage. Radius Books, 2019. ISBN 978-1-942185-62-8

Awards edit

Solo exhibitions edit

  • Chute d'un dieu souverain, 18e Festival international de photojournalisme, Visa pour l'image, Perpignan, France, 2006.[44]
  • Rébellion au Népal, Les rencontres prix Bayeux–Calvados des correspondants de guerre, Galerie le Radar, Bayeux, 2007[35][45]
  • The fall of a god king, Artè Foto Festival, Villa Salvati, Ancona, 2008[46]
  • Népal: rituels et révolution, Galerie in my room, Paris, 2009[47]
  • Nepal: A 'people's war' topples the god king, Moving Walls 16. Open Society Foundations, New York, London, and Washington DC, 2010[48]
  • Behind the curtains, Visa pour l'image, Perpignan, France, 2010[49][50]
  • Behind the curtains, Third Floor Gallery, Cardiff, Britain, 2011–12[51]
  • Off the radar, Festival-Photoreporter, Baie de Saint-Brieuc, Côtes-d'Armor, France, 2012[52]
  • Blue Sky Days, Anastasia Photo gallery, New York City 2016[1]
  • Blue Sky Days, Galerija Vartai, Vilnius, Lithuania, 2017[53]
  • Lines and Lineage, galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris, 2019[54]
  • Lines and Lineage, Espace Matisse, Creil, France, 2021[55]

Group exhibitions edit

  • North Korean Perspectives, MoCP, Chicago, USA, 2015[56]
  • North Korean Perspectives, Drents Museum, Assen, the Netherlands, 2015[57]
  • Bending the Frame, Fotografisk Center, Copenhagen, Denmark, 2016[58]
  • To See Without Being Seen, Kemper Museum, Saint Louis, USA, 2016[59]
  • Surveillance, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, USA, 2016[60]
  • Watching You, Watching Me, Museum of Photography, Berlin, Germany, 2017[61]
  • Perpetual Revolution: the Image and Social Change, ICP Museum, New York, USA, 2017[62]
  • Watching You, Watching Me, BOZAR, Centre for Fine Arts, Brussels, Belgium, 2018[63]
  • Stateless: Views of Global Migration, MoCP, Chicago, USA, 2019[64]
  • Sanctuary: Building a House Without Walls, St. John the Divine, New York, USA, 2019[65]
  • WALLS, Annenberg Center for Photography, Los Angeles, USA, 2019[66]
  • FLUX, Photaumnales festival, Le Quadrilatère, Beauvais, France, 2020[67]
  • SEND ME AN IMAGE, C/O Foundation, Berlin, Germany, 2021[68]

Films edit

  • Far West – The Hidden History, Documentary (54 minutes), co-director & cinematographer, 2021[69]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Tomas Van Houtryve". Anastasia Photo. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  2. ^ "Tomas van Houtryve". IMDb. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  3. ^ "Tomas van Houtryve". VII. Retrieved August 9, 2013.
  4. ^ "Masthead | Harper's Magazine". Harper’s Magazine. January 13, 2020. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  5. ^ "Chute d'un dieu souverain". Visa pour l’image (in French). Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  6. ^ "Le prix Bayeux endeuillé". L'Obs (in French). October 8, 2006. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  7. ^ "Tomas van Houtryve - The Photo Society". thephotosociety.org. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  8. ^ "Behind the Curtains". VII Photo Agency Store. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  9. ^ Houtryve, Tomas van (April 1, 2014). "Blue Sky Days: We often forget that the boundary between the United States and Mexico was not always where it is today. It used to be seven hundred miles farther north, following what…". Harper's Magazine. Vol. April 2014. ISSN 0017-789X. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  10. ^ Rachel Segal Hamilton, "Getty Images Grants for Editorial Photography: Tomas van Houtryve", British Journal of Photography, Archived here by the Wayback Machine from the original on September 8, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2014. The page employs Javascript to redirect elsewhere after a few seconds. In order to read it, disable Javascript within your browser before attempting to access the page.
  11. ^ Conor Risch, "Tomas van Houtryve drone essay longest ever published by Harper's", PDN Online, March 25, 2014. Retrieved June 7, 2014.
  12. ^ Abigail Radnor, "Drones: An eye in the sky", The Guardian, June 7, 2014. Retrieved June 7, 2014.
  13. ^ "2015 Infinity Award: Photojournalism". International Center of Photography. February 23, 2016. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  14. ^ "2015 Tomas van Houtryve CIS2-HJ | World Press Photo". www.worldpressphoto.org. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  15. ^ "Traces of Exile". Pulitzer Center. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  16. ^ "Stateless: Views of Global Migration | Museum of Contemporary Photography". www.mocp.org. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  17. ^ "'Traces of Exile' SECCA Installation Preview". Pulitzer Center. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  18. ^ "Exhibition at C/O Berlin reveals the evolving relationship between society and photography". The Game. August 31, 2021. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  19. ^ Send Me an Image ARTBOOK | D.A.P. 2021 Catalog Steidl/C/O Berlin Books Exhibition Catalogues 9783958299627.
  20. ^ Houtryve, Tomas van (January 27, 2017). "Europe's Migrant Trail, Through the Instagrams of Refugees". ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  21. ^ "Traces of Exile". International Center of Photography. April 20, 2020. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  22. ^ "Here Are the Three Inaugural CatchLight Fellows". Time. April 25, 2017. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  23. ^ Houtryve, Tomas van; Romero, Simon (April 3, 2019). "What if Mexico Still Included California, Nevada and Texas?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  24. ^ "Tomas van Houtryve: Lines and Lineage". Radius Books. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  25. ^ "Tomas Van Houtryve Receives 2019 Roger Pic Award". VII Agency. June 11, 2019. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  26. ^ Tomas van Houtryve Lines and Lineage ARTBOOK | D.A.P. 2019 Catalog Radius Books Books Exhibition Catalogues 9781942185628.
  27. ^ "FAR WEST, THE HIDDEN HISTORY". distribution.arte.tv (in French). Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  28. ^ Houtryve, Mathilde Damoisel, Tomas van (January 9, 2022), La case du siècle Far West, l'histoire oubliée (in French), retrieved September 13, 2022{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  29. ^ Traverso, Sol (March 17, 2022). "Far West – The Hidden History, a documentary at TCA". The Taos News. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  30. ^ "How do you fly a drone around Notre Dame? Very carefully". Photography. January 20, 2022. Archived from the original on January 20, 2022. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  31. ^ "Museum of Contemporary Photography". www.mocp.org. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  32. ^ "Traces of Exile". International Center of Photography. April 20, 2020. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  33. ^ "Untitled". art.nelson-atkins.org. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  34. ^ Ville de Perpignan Rémi Ochlik Award Archived September 14, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, Visa pour l'image. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  35. ^ a b "Exposition du 1er au 28 octobre 2007 : Tomas Van Houtryve : rébellion au Népal - Prix du public en 2006", Galerie le Radar. (in French) Retrieved by the Wayback Machine on October 18, 2007. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  36. ^ Winners Gallery: Third Place: Tomas van Houtryve: Panos Pictures: 'Moldova - The Outsiders'", Pictures of the Year International. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  37. ^ Winners Gallery: Photographer of the Year - Freelance/Agency: First Place, Pictures of the Year International. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  38. ^ World Press Photo awards 2015 Contemporary Issues, 2nd prize, stories, Tomas van Houtryve. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
  39. ^ "2015 Infinity Award: Photojournalism". International Center of Photography. February 23, 2016. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  40. ^ "Research and Development Award – Hasselblad Foundation". February 17, 2016. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  41. ^ "CENTER's Producer's Choice Award 1st Place Winner: Tomas van Houtryve". LENSCRATCH. May 26, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  42. ^ "Tomas van Houtryve / Leica Oskar Barnack Award". Tomas van Houtryve / Leica Oskar Barnack Award. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  43. ^ "Prix Roger Pic 2019 : deux lauréats ex-æquo". Scam : Société civile des auteurs multimédia (in French). October 23, 2019. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  44. ^ Exhibition notice, Visa pour l'image. (in French) Retrieved by the Wayback Machine on November 16, 2006. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  45. ^ Exhibition notice (also appears as a frame within this page Archived December 11, 2013, at the Wayback Machine of the Prix Bayeux Calvados site). (in French). Accessed March 21, 2014.
  46. ^ Exhibition notice, ArtèFoto Festival. (in Italian) Retrieved by the Wayback Machine on August 27, 2008. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  47. ^ Exhibition flyer. (in French) Accessed via blog of Galerie in my room on March 21, 2014
  48. ^ Slideshow, Open Society Foundations. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  49. ^ Exhibition notice, Visa pour l'image. (in Catalan) Retrieved by the Wayback Machine on January 7, 2011. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  50. ^ "2010: Photographers - Exhibitions", Visa pour l'image. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  51. ^ Exhibition notice Archived April 2, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, Third Floor Gallery. Retrieved March 8, 2015.
  52. ^ Exhibition notice, Festival-Photoreporter. (in French) Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  53. ^ "Tomas van Houtryve | 8 September - 17 October 2017". Galerija Vartai. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  54. ^ "LINES AND LINEAGE-Tomas VAN HOUTRYVE". www.baudoin-lebon.com. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  55. ^ "Lines and Lineage". 9 Lives Magazine (in French). Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  56. ^ "North Korean Perspectives | Museum of Contemporary Photography". www.mocp.org. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  57. ^ "The Kim Utopia | Drents Museum". drentsmuseum.nl. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  58. ^ "Bending The Frame". www.fotografiskcenter.dk (in Danish). August 27, 2016. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  59. ^ "'To See Without Being Seen' opens Jan. 29 | Newsroom | Washington University in St. Louis". news-archive.wustl.edu. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  60. ^ "Drone Photographer Tomas van Houtryve to Give Photography Society Talk at Nelson-Atkins". Nelson Atkins. October 4, 2016. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  61. ^ Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu. "Museum für Fotografie | Watching You, Watching Me. A Photographic Response to Surveillance | Das Feld hat Augen. Bilder des überwachenden Blicks | 17.2. – 2.7.2017". www.smb.museum (in German). Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  62. ^ Friedman, Julia (April 6, 2017). "Measuring the Social Impact of Internet Images". Hyperallergic. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  63. ^ "Watching You Watching Me | Bozar Brussel". Bozar (in Flemish). Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  64. ^ "Stateless: Views of Global Migration | Museum of Contemporary Photography". www.mocp.org. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  65. ^ "Sanctuary: Building a House Without Walls". VII Agency. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  66. ^ "W|ALLS: Defend, Divide, and the Divine". Annenberg Space for Photography. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  67. ^ "Flux, le discret et le continu". www.photaumnales.fr. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  68. ^ "Exhibition at C/O Berlin reveals the evolving relationship between society and photography". The Game. August 31, 2021. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  69. ^ Houtryve, Mathilde Damoisel, Tomas van (January 9, 2022), La case du siècle Far West, l'histoire oubliée (in French), retrieved October 4, 2022{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

External links edit