Bieke Depoorter on trust, intimacy and chance encounters
The relationships that Bieke Depoorter establishes with her subjects are key to her approach to her work, and at the foundation of her artistic practice. Accidental encounters are often the starting point for projects: some of them leading to relationships which are years long. The ways these interactions naturally develop dictate the nature of Depoorter’s work. In our third on-demand course, Depoorter delves into her philosophy on working with people — one that is rooted in the idea of being “a person first, photographer second” — while also exploring the complexities that come with this approach. Through a curriculum of 17 lessons, Depoorter shares how she builds trust with her subjects in a short space of time, allowing her to create intimate portraits of near-strangers. Drawing on her main bodies of work, she explores the benefits and complexities of photographic relationships. In this course, discover how to develop and maintain momentum while working on long-term projects. Learn with Depoorter now and gain advice on the editing process, sequencing your images, and the considerations around presenting your work in both photobooks and exhibitions.
Some materials and scenes within this course contain adult content.
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About your tutor
Bieke Depoorter (b. 1986) received a master’s degree in photography at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent in 2009. Three years later, at 25 years old, she was selected as a nominee of the photo cooperative Magnum Photos, where she was named a full member in 2016.
Depoorter has won several awards and honors, including the Magnum Expression Award, The Larry Sultan award and the Prix Levallois. She has published four books: Ou Menya, I am About to Call it a Day, As it May Be, and Sète#15. She worked together with Aperture, Editions Xavier Barral, Edition Patrick Frey, Lannoo, Hannibal and Le bec en l’air to publish these books.
