EXHIBITION PRESENTS THRIVING PHOTOGRAPHY SCENE IN DENMARK This exhibition provides a glimpse of the rich diversity of subjects, styles, and techniques explored by photographers in Denmark today. Comprising 92 images by 27 artists demonstrating the depth and vitality of Denmark's thriving contemporary photography scene, it includes influential pioneers in the relatively short history of Danish photography as well as representatives of the new generation. Rather than seeking to define a "Danish School" of photography, this exhibition challenges the concept of a Danish or Nordic style by examining the fertile international exchange of ideas and influences that characterizes a discipline in the midst of a technical revolution. FOTO: New Photography from Denmark is organized by the Faulconer Gallery at Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa and is curated by Daniel Strong and designed by Milton Severe. The first major survey of contemporary Danish photography in the United States, the exhibition was first presented in 2005 at the Faulconer Gallery as Scandinavian Photography 2: Denmark. Edward P. Gallagher, President of The American-Scandinavian Foundation (ASF), says, "The ASF has been strongly committed to presenting new work by Scandinavian artists and has been involved in all four of the major exhibitions of contemporary Nordic photography shown in the U.S. FOTO: New Photography from Denmark demonstrates the ASF's commitment to showcasing the broad range of Scandinavian art." In general, photography is less accepted as an art form in Denmark than it is in other European countries, and there are fewer outlets for exhibiting it. But the relative lack of support for photography has not diminished the number of artists working in the medium or their passion for it, as curator Daniel Strong discovered on his visits to the country over the past two years. Visitors to the exhibition will see a great deal of experimentation with technique, both in the darkroom and with digital forms of manipulation and printing. "The medium of photography is in the midst of a technical revolution that no photographer can ignore," Strong says. "That is why now is the perfect moment to look at photographs produced by artists whose careers bridge the late 20th and early 21st centuries." FOTO: New Photography from Denmark includes works in various genres-landscape, portrait, street and studio photography-by artists ranging in age from 27 to 85, many of whom have not exhibited previously in this country. While Kirsten Klein explores the conventions of landscape photography, Camilla Holmgren's female nudes in confined spaces challenge notions of intimacy, exoticism, and desire. Some of the other artists interrogate the "rules" of documentary photography or revisit old negatives with new techniques. Many of the artists in the exhibition are well-traveled and work under a variety of influences not limited by national borders. The oldest artist in the exhibition, Keld Helmer-Petersen, studied photography in Chicago in the 1940s and was one of the first to introduce Denmark to the qualities of abstract art and design that he had found in photography on this side of the Atlantic. He is also known as a pioneer in the use of color photography. Publication A 206-page catalogue with essays by Ingrid Fischer Jonge, Lars Schwander, Tove Thage, and Finn Thrane accompanies the exhibition. Support This exhibition has been made possible in part by generous support from The Honorable Edward E. Elson & Mrs. Susie Elson, Flemming & Judy Heilmann, the John L. Loeb, Jr. Foundation, The Honorable Stuart A. Bernstein, and Andrew & Mary Whist. Additional support has been provided by the BG Fund, Denmark. Gallery talks: Thursday, September 21, Tuesday, October 17, and Tuesday, November 7, 1:00 p.m. Free with gallery admission. Related Programs: The Invisible & the Ordinary: Contemporary Danish Photography Tuesday, October 10, 6:30 p.m. $10 ($8 ASF members, free for students) Ingrid Fischer Jonge, Director of the National Museum of Photography and Head of Cultural Activities at the Royal Library in Copenhagen, Denmark, will discuss contemporary photography in Denmark.