Balcony Podcast

Thana Faroq (b. Yemen) is a photographer, writer, and educator who translates the consequences of significant events, particularly related to migration. Her work emphasizes women's resilience, adaptability, and search for belonging. thanafaroq.com

On a stormy day in Helsinki, I got to sit down with Donald Weber (b. 1973, Canada) — a brilliant sharp mind, experienced photographer, and professor at Aalto University in Finland. His work focuses on the effects of world power, and he is part of The Information Front: a series of publications of works by Ukrainian photojournalists. donaldweber.com

In this 9th episode, which is about the topic of polarisation, I thought it would be nice to add a third voice to the conversation. I sat down with photographer Chris Becher and researcher and lecturer Gerlov van Engelenhoven. Both of them are nuanced thinkers who are able to translate the complexity of the world in a relatable way.

With full dedication and care artist Laia Abril (b. Catalunya, 1986) works on her long-term project A History of Misogyny. Her second chapter, On Rape, just came out as a bold book. laiaabril.com

The interests of Rob Hornstra (b. The Netherlands, 1975) lay beyond the intellectual bubble and his work is raw, honest and daring. After teaching for several years at the KABK, Rob decided to fully focus on his long-term photography project The Europeans.

Emilia Martin (b. Poland, 1991) is a photographer and artist with interests revolving around identity, ownership and belonging. She chooses to work on long term personal projects, where she regards trust, understanding and curiosity to be the key factors.

Photographer and educator Shadman Shahid (b. Bangladesh, 1987) creates images that walk the thin line between documentary and fiction. In this 5th episode of the Balcony Podcast, we talk about the presence of the spirit in images, the illusion of happy family albums and art existing beyond museums.

This time I had a talk with the exploring photographer Stan Heerkens (b. The Netherlands, 1994), who seeks to get an entrance into a hidden world or niche from society. He recently graduated with his project Made in Brabant, in which he exposed the XTC production that takes place in the south of The Netherlands.

Marwan Bassiouni (b. Switserland, 1985) is a photographer and artist who graduated from the KABK in 2018 with the project ‘New Dutch Views', in which he suggests a different view of looking at Islam in the West.

In this 2nd episode I had a talk with visual artist Ola Lanko (b. Ukraine, 1985) on the on only thing consistent in history: change. Ola fearlessly builds places that exist between the imaginative and the real, using knowledge of the past, awareness of the present and responsibility towards the future.

Sabine Rovers (b. United Kingdom, 1992) is a social documentary photographer, creating work that is led by a constant curiosity and an urge to understand and connect with new people, communities and subcultures she comes across.