”Every great building is remembered by an iconic image”
Åke E: son Lindman is regarded as one of the world’s foremost architecture photographers. He has captured iconic buildings all all over the world, and for almost four decades, he’s been photographing contemporary Swedish architecture.
How does Swedish architecture differ from other countries?
”I usually think that each country or culture gets the architecture they deserve, but of course it’s not as simple as that. Good architecture is dependent on so much more than just the architect – public buildings reflect society and the political climate and private houses have a lot to do with the economy. But if we are to generalize, then Swedish houses are quite pared down and minimalistic. Sometimes private houses can be a bit boring and box-like even. We just don’t have the same humor or expressiveness as you can find in Spain or Italy. But we have some great architects, like Tham Videgård, Claesson Koivisto Rune and Thomas Sandell to name but a few, and they are all very appreciated internationally.”
Do you still feel passionate about photographing architecture?
”I really do. Im retired and I may have slowed down a bit, but I still love to work. I would even go as far as to say that work has never been as good as now; with all the experience I have gathered over the years I know exactly what angles I want. I quickly find the essence of a building. I know how to read it and follow its lines. Last year I left my studio in the city and got a new space near our home. The idea was to balance traditional work with more artistic work, but I ended up being more busy working than ever. Today I still go to my studio every day, and sometimes I go there even at weekends. I have a large darkroom there and I work on a book with new artwork.”
What sets architecture photography apart?
”First of all it’s much more technical than other types of photography. You don’t want any falling lines and you need depth of field. I want to highlight the architecture and I don’t like to have a lot of stuff standing in the way. I prefer to reduce and simplify. To me it’s always been important to show the ideas of the architect. It should be visible in the picture. I’ve never acted as a solo artist, I have a client.”
How important is a good photograph?
”Every great building is remembered by an iconic image. Many of the big architects understand this and they are really coherent in the way they make sure their buildings are portrayed when they are finalized. They don’t play with the expression and they make sure to use the same photographic language for all their finalized buildings. Many of the houses that I’ve photographed over the years are communicated by that one iconic image that stands out. Not everyone have the possibility to see these private houses in real life.”
What are you working on right now?
I’ve made about 50 or 60 books on assignment for various architects or projects, but I’ve only made two books on my own. So right now I’m working on a new art book with chemigrams that I’m experimenting with. I’ve also had some interests from a museum to gather the most iconic images of houses that I’ve photographed from the 1990s until today in Scandinavia. It would really give the visitor a good idea of residential architecture in Scandinavia the last four decades.
