Foam_Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam presents Paradis: the first major retrospective of the work of Dutch photographer Charlotte Dumas (b. 1977, Vlaardingen). Dumas makes serene, intimate portraits of animals. For the first time, Dumas presents a selection from the various series of animal portraits she has made in recent years. Shown here in a single exhibition, a new relationship emerges between the portraits of horses, wolves, tigers and other animals, highlighting the connection between the different subjects. Dumas also presents a selection of the polaroids she has taken on the side since she began and which provide tangible evidence of her extensive travels in pursuit of her subject.

It was at the Rijksakademie that she made her first series of animal portraits - five police dogs - which grew from a fascination with the portrayal of controlled aggression. In subsequent years several series emerged focusing on subjects such as police horses (Four Horses), army horses (Day is Done), wolves (Reverie), and more recently street dogs (Heart Shaped Hole). The relationship between man and animal forms a constant indirect element in her work. Dumas prefers to photograph animals with a close connection to humans and whom fulfil an important role for us: animals that have been tamed or trained by humans and which serve a particular purpose, whether in an actual task or by their appearance. Each of these animals lives in a human environment, generally in captivity. Dumas employs traditional formats, invariably placing the subject in the centre, portraying moments of concentrated calm. The psychology of portraiture plays a key role in this.  

Dumas always works in series. She spends an average of one year on each subject, placing particular emphasis on the study and observation of the animal and its environment. Finally, she selects a relatively small number of photos - between six and nine - for a series. Since Dumas never uses a telescopic lens, the distance that the viewer experiences is the actual distance of the photographer from the subject. This requires a variety of techniques: it is easier to bridge the physical distance when photographing horses or dogs than when photographing wolves or tigers. Often Dumas portrays animals lying, a position that stresses the vulnerability which Dumas believes every animal possesses.  

Charlotte Dumas is a graduate of Gerrit Rietveld Academie and Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten in Amsterdam. Dumas has exhibited at Galerie Paul Andriesse, Amsterdam (2004/08), Valentina Bonomo Gallery, Rome (2005),de Pont Museum, Tilburg (2006) and Lawrence Markey, San Antonio TX (2008). Her work has also appeared in various group shows including Dutch Seen: New York Rediscovered which recently opened at the Museum of the City of New York, New York (jointly organised by Foam to mark Hudson Year), Creatures from the Collection in Huis Marseille (2008), L'esprit du Nord, Maison Européenne de la Photographie, Paris (2006). Dumas currently lives and works in New York.

Accompanying the exhibition is an eponymous publication, Paradis (published by d'jonge Hond). A documentary made by VPRO for Dutch television's Het Uur van de Wolf is premiered in Foam at the opening of the exhibition.

With thanks to Galerie Paul Andriesse and the Rabo Kunstcollectie