Martin Roemers

Martin Roemers (born August 21, 1962 in Oldehove, Netherlands) is a Dutch photographer and artist.

Roemers studied at the AKI Academy of Visual Arts in Enschede, the Netherlands. He graduated in 1991. Roemers is known for long term projects about urbanisation and long-term effects of warfare.

Trabant

His first long-term project was Trabant. The Final Days of Production (1990-1992). The most well known product of the German Democratic Republic was the Trabant car. Roemers, still being a student, photographed the production process and made portraits of the Trabant workers. The book and exhibition of this project followed years later in 2007.[1]

Warfare project

Roemers opted for the black-and-white portrait in his photo projects on the long-term effects of warfare. This resulted in three books and exhibitions: Kabul (2002): Portraits of ISAF soldiers in Kabul, Afghanistan photographed with an antique Afghan box camera.[2] The Never-Ending War (2004-2005): World War Two veterans from Russia, Germany, USA, UK, Poland, Belgium and the Netherlands. The series received a World Press Photo award in 2006.[3] The Eyes of War (2007-2012): Blind victims of World War Two. For this project, he made portraits of dozens of people who had lost their eyesight as children, young adults or soldiers in the violence of WW2.[4][5][6][7]

Relics of the Cold War

In his book Relics of the Cold War (1998-2009) Roemers remained true to his theme of war. He now assumed the position of an archaeologist tracing the remains of the Cold War in former Eastern and Western Europe and then photographing them in situ. This generated a bizarre collection of images of underground tunnels, rusting tanks and abandoned nuclear missile launch pads: the discarded baggage of a longstanding policy of mutual deterrence.[8][9][10][11]

Metropolis

His perhaps best known project is Metropolis (2007-2015). In this project he photographed 22 megacities worldwide with more than ten million inhabitants in which people often live under difficult circumstances in densely populated areas. Roemers presents these (analog) cityscapes from an elevated perspective and uses a long exposure time in which traffic and people merge into a blurred rush of energy. Metropolis features Beijing, Buenos Aires, Cairo, Dhaka, Guangzhou, Istanbul, Jakarta, Karachi, Kolkata, Lagos, London, Los Angeles, Manila, Mexico City, Moscow, Mumbai, New York, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Shanghai and Tokyo.[12][13][14][15]

Exhibits and recognition

Roemers’ work has been exhibited throughout Europe, America, Asia and Australia. It is represented in many collections including Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum [16](60 prints) and The Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Texas.

He has received two World Press Photo Awards, including a first prize for Metropolis, along with a number of other prizes. Articles and reviews about Roemers' work have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The New Yorker.

Books (Monographs)

  • Martin Roemers, De laatste lichting – The Last Batch, Het Apollohuis (Eindhoven, 1996). Introductions by Rolf Sachsse, Herman Amersfoort, ISBN 9789071638329
  • Martin Roemers, Tussen vijandige Buren, Mets & Schilt Publishers (Amsterdam, 2000) Introduction by Henri Beunders, ISBN 90-5330-289-1
  • Martin Roemers, Kabul, Legermuseum (Delft, 2003), Introduction by Frits Baarda, ISBN 90-6116-017-0
  • Martin Roemers, The Never-Ending War – De eindeloze oorlog, QV Publishers (Nijmegen, 2005). Introduction by H.J.A. Hofland, Interviews by Martin Roemers, ISBN 90-80974-013
  • Martin Roemers, Trabant; The Final Days of Production – Trabant; Die letzten Tage der Produktion, Wasmuth Verlag (Berlin, 2007), Introductions by Winnfried Sonntag, Achim Dresler, Kerstin Schwenn, ISBN 978-3-8030-3324-6
  • Martin Roemers, Relics of the Cold War, Hatje Cantz (Ostfildern, 2009), Introductions by Nadine Barth, H.J.A. Hofland, Martin Roemers, ISBN 978-3-7757-2534-7
  • Martin Roemers, The Eyes of War, Hatje Cantz (Ostfildern, 2012), Introductions by Cees Nooteboom, Martin Roemers, Interviews by Martin Roemers, ISBN 978-3-7757-3400-4
  • Martin Roemers, Metropolis, Hatje Cantz (Ostfildern, 2015) Introductions by Ricky Burdett, Azu Nwagbogu, Els Barents, ISBN 978-3-7757-4006-7

Books with contributions by Roemers

  • Document Nederland, Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam, 2005), ISBN 90 40090602
  • Traces & Omens, Noorderlicht (Groningen, 2005), ISBN 90 76703 26 4
  • Warzone, Noorderlicht (Groningen, 2010), ISBN 978 90 76703 44 2
  • Metropolis – City Life in the Urban Age, Noorderlicht (Groningen, 2011), ISBN 978 90 76703 46 6
  • Visions of Earth, National Geographic (Washington, 2011), ISBN 978 1 4262 0935 2
  • Growth, Prix Pictet, teNeues (Kempen, 2011), ISBN 978 3 8327 9454 5
  • Modern Times, Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam 2014), ISBN 978 94 6208 179 6
  • Mexico Megalopolis, Lannoo (Tielt, 2016), ISBN 978 9401434782

Permanent Collections

- Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

- Huis Marseille – Museum for Photography, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

- Kunsthal, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

- Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Art Collection, The Hague, The Netherlands

- Nationaal Militair Museum, Soesterberg, The Netherlands

- Haus der Geschichte der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Bonn, Germany

- German Historical Museum (DHM), Berlin, Germany

- Industriemuseum Sachsen, Chemnitz, Germany

- Stadtmuseum Berlin, Berlin, Germany

- Ford Foundation, New York, USA

- The Museum of Fine Arts Houston, Houston, USA

Solo exhibitions

2001 Noorderlicht Photogallery, Groningen, The Netherlands, Tussen vijandige buren

2003 Legermuseum, Delft, The Netherlands, Kabul

2007 Kunsthal Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, The Never-Ending War

2009 Kunsthal Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, A tribute to the Trabant

2009 - 2010 Willy Brandt Haus, Berlin, Germany, Relics of the Cold War

2009 - 2010 Deutsches Museum, Munich, Germany, Trabant: The Final Days of Production

2010 Krasnoyarsk Museum Center, Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, Russia, Relics of the Cold War

2012 Kunsthal, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, The Eyes of War

2012 Anastasia Photo, New York, USA, Metropolis (Work in Progress)

2014 Anastasia Photo, New York, USA, Relics of the Cold War

2014 - 2015 German Historical Museum (DHM), Berlin, The Eyes of War[17]

2015 Arsenal, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, The Eyes of War

2015 - 2016 Huis Marseille - Museum for Photography, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Metropolis

2016 East Wing, Dubai, Metropolis

2016 German Historical Museum (DHM), Berlin, Relics of the Cold War

2016 Torch Gallery, Amsterdam, Metropolis

2016 Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Mumbai City Museum, Mumbai, India, Metropolis

Group exhibitions

2002 The Netherlands Photo Institute, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, Brandhaarden – Warzone

2004 State Museum of the Political History of Russia, St. Petersburg, Russia, Warzone - Dutch Photographers and International Conflicts

2005 Noorderlicht Photofestival, Groningen, The Netherlands, Traces & Omens

2006 Customs House, Sydney, Australia, Dutch Decade: Photography from The Netherlands

2007 - 2008 Willy-Brandt-Haus, Berlin, Germany, Arbeit und Alltag 1951-1992: Fotografien von Roger Melis, Martin Roemers und Walter Vogel

2009 - 2010 Ephraim-Palais, Stadtmuseum Berlin, Berlin, Germany, Fallmauerfall | 61 – 89 – 09 Grenzueberschreitung und Grenzerfahrung im Spiegel der Kunst

2010 Duke University, Center for Documentary Studies, Durham USA, Daylight/CDS Photo Awards

2010 Photofestival Bredaphoto, Breda, The Netherlands, Tilt

2010 Noorderlicht Photofestival, Leeuwarden, The Netherlands, Warzone

2011 Museum of Estonian Architecture, Tallinn, Estonia, Metropolis - City Life in the Urban Age

2011 The Empty Quarter, Dubai, Metropolis 2.0

2011 Noorderlicht Photofestival, Groningen, The Netherlands, Metropolis

2011 Sony World Photography Festival 2011, London, San Francisco, Shanghai, São Paulo

2011 Gemeente Museum Den Haag, The Hague, The Netherlands, Summer Exhibition

2011 Photofestival Naarden, Naarden, The Netherlands, Let's face it

2012 Photoville, Brooklyn, New York

2013 Paris Photo, Paris

2013 Photoville, New York City

2013 Somerset House, Syngenta Photography Award 2013, London

2013 ART Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

2015 Acte2 Galerie, Paris, Urban Dreams

2016 Biennial of Photography, Knokke-Heist, Belgium, Mexico Megalopolis

Awards

2006 World Press Photo, 2nd prize Portraits Stories The Never-Ending War

2009 European Prize of Architectural Photography, Commendation Metropolis

2010 Photo District News, USA, Notable Photo Books of 2010 Relics of the Cold War

2010 Daylight/ CDS Photo Awards, USA, Project Prize: Honorable Mention Relics of the Cold War

2010 Daylight/ CDS Photo Awards, USA, Work-in-Process Prize: Juror Pick Metropolis

2011 World Press Photo, 1st prize Daily Life Stories Metropolis[18]>

2011 Sony World Photography Awards, Nomination The Eyes of War

2013 Deutscher Fotobuchpreis, Nomination The Eyes of War

Bibliography

- Eyemazing (NL), Martin Roemers, The Never-Ending War - Tyler Whisnand, #8, 2005

- Foto8 (UK), Relics - Jon Levy, March 2006

- Der Spiegel (DE), Bunkermentalitaet, #51, 2009

- The Wall Street Journal (US), The Little Car That Could (Sort Of): a Trabant Tribute - J.S. Marcus, Apr. 24, 2009

- Photo District News (US), Notable Photo Books of 2010, Nov. 2010

- Newsweek (US), Hello, Seven Billion - Martin Roemers, November 7, 2011

- The Guardian Weekend (UK), Kolkata by Martin Roemers – Phil Daoust, May 21, 2011

- The Wall Street Journal (US), The Beauty and Brutality of Images That Reach Far Beyond the Headlines – Joell Weickgenant, May 13, 2011

- The New Yorker (US), Goings On About Town - Martin Roemers, Apr. 2, 2012

- The New York Photo Review (US), Urban Speed – Ed Barnas, Apr. 18, 2012

- The New York Times (US), Sunday Review. Living in The New Metropolis - Martin Roemers, May 6, 2012

- The New York Times (US), The Bustle and the Blur - Liz Robbins, July 28, 2013

- The Wall Street Journal (US), Collector's Eye: Anthony Terrana. A Periodontist's Photographic Passion – Ellen Gamerman, March 30, 2013

- Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (DE), Blinde Blicke - Andreas Kilb, Oct. 6, 2014

- Geo (DE), Der Rhytmus in Metropolis - Juergen Schaeffer, Sept. 2014

- Collector Daily (US), Martin Roemers, Relics of the Cold War @Anastasia Photo - Loring Knoblauch July 30, 2014

- European Photography (DE), Urbanics - The Contemporary City - Andreas Mueller Pohle, #98, 2015

- Cees Nooteboom - Wat het oog je vertelt. Essay: Het onzichtbare gezien: over het werk van 

 Martin Roemers, De Bezige Bij (Amsterdam, 2016), 
ISBN 9789023498131

- Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (DE), Wahnbilder einer versunkenen Epoche - Andreas Kilb, March 14, 2016

- Geo (FR), Marées urbaines – Jean Christoph Servant, Feb. 2016

- NRC Handelsblad (NL), Metropolis: chaos megasteden voelbaar - Tracy Metz, Jan. 19, 2016

- The New Review, The Independent on Sunday (UK), Roadshow – Rachael Pells, Jan. 10, 2016

- Photonews (DE), Der Fotograf Martin Roemers - Gunda Schwantje, Jan. 2016

References

  1. ↑ "The Man Behind the Modernism". Wall Street Journal. 24 April 2009. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2018-04-03 – via www.wsj.com.
  2. ↑ Martin Roemers, Kabul, Legermuseum (Delft, 2003), Introduction by Frits Baarda, ISBN 90-6116-017-0
  3. ↑ Martin Roemers, The Never-Ending War – De eindeloze oorlog, QV Publishers (Nijmegen, 2005). Introduction by H.J.A. Hofland, Interviews by Martin Roemers, ISBN 90-80974-013
  4. ↑ Martin Roemers, The Eyes of War, Hatje Cantz (Ostfildern, 2012), Introductions by Cees Nooteboom, Martin Roemers, Interviews by Martin Roemers, ISBN 978-3-7757-3400-4
  5. ↑ Deutsches Historisches Museum (3 November 2014), Martin Roemers - Interview zum Projekt "The eyes of war" – via YouTube
  6. ↑ "Conscientious Extended Meditations on Photographs: Frederick Lennart Bentley by Martin Roemers". jmcolberg.com. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  7. ↑ "Review: The Eyes of War by Martin Roemers". jmcolberg.com. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  8. ↑ "Conscientious Review: Relics of the Cold War by Martin Roemers". jmcolberg.com. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  9. ↑ Martin Roemers, Relics of the Cold War, Hatje Cantz (Ostfildern, 2009), Introductions by Nadine Barth, H.J.A. Hofland, Martin Roemers, , ISBN 978-3-7757-2534-7
  10. ↑ (www.dw.com), Deutsche Welle. "'A Disneyland of the Cold War': How Martin Roemers photographed the war that never happened 02.03.2016". DW.COM. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  11. ↑ Kilb, Andreas (13 March 2016). "Kalter Krieg auf 70 Fotos: Wahnbilder einer versunkenen Epoche". FAZ.NET. ISSN 0174-4909. Retrieved 2018-04-03 – via www.faz.net.
  12. ↑ Martin Roemers, Metropolis, Hatje Cantz (Ostfildern, 2015) Introductions by Ricky Burdett, Azu Nwagbogu, Els Barents, ISBN 978-3-7757-4006-7
  13. ↑ Schwantje, Gunda (21 March 2016). "Fotoprojekt "Metropolis": Der Flow der Megastädte". Spiegel Online. Retrieved 2018-04-03 – via Spiegel Online.
  14. ↑ GEO, Video interview Metropolis (English/German), August 2014 http://pmd-video-streaming.geo.de/bcstream/hds/1379209439/201409/1379209439_3775198473001_2014-09-Roemers-Metropolis-NEU.mp4
  15. ↑ "The Bustle and the Blur". Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  16. ↑ "Search". Rijksmuseum. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  17. ↑ German Historical Museum, Berlin, Video interview The Eyes of War (English/German) October 2014 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c96b0dC6btQ
  18. ↑ "Metropolis". World Press Photo. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
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