Unabashed entries, photography by Anders Petersen

Named one of the most influential European photographers since the 1970’s, Anders Petersen was born in Stockholm, Sweden in 1944. His first success journey with photography starts from humble beginnings – in a bar called Cafe Lehmitz. In 1967 he began to photograph the bar, eventually accumulating enough images to coat its walls with over 300 of his prints.

From these beginnings to becoming Professor of Photography at the School of Photography and Film in Goteborg, Sweden in the early 2000s, Anders Petersen is now an internationally-recognized artist.

Unafraid and unabashed, Anders photographs the explicit, grotesque and circus-like snapshots of the human form. His images feel like an intimate diary entry, each photo narrating an answerless story, wrought with questions.

Throughout his career he delves into the quirky edges of the world, uncovering the raw and documenting his discoveries in his patented black and white, high contrast style.

Just like most who find that all roads lead to Rome, Anders found himself coming back again and again, once in 1984 and two more times in 2005 and 2012, participating in the Fotografia – International Photography Festival. He also had a solo exhibit at the Macro Museum, featuring his diary of Rome, which later became a limited edition book published by Punctum Press.

Instead of focusing on the city’s well-documented beauty, Anders delved into a gritty exploration of the current Rome. We can see his direct gaze on the seemingly unordinary encapsulated within the cobblestone streets and inside shuttered homes, brought to a stark and often jarring form.

 

-Kirby Caraballo