On the fifth floor of Universiteitssingel 40 you can visit a little but exquisite exhibition of art photos of two photographers Philip Driessen and Jorgen Polman. These art photos, purchased in the nineties are part of the UM art collection.

Photographers Philip Driessen(1967) and Jorgen Polman (1966).

Although completely different, the work of both is characterized by a high level  of technical finishing.

Philip Driessen records atmospheres and structures in his photographs. Striking is his search for the light. Driessen is able to capture that light very subtle, almost fragile. The photographs by Philip Driessen allow us to reflect on inconspicuous spots in buildings. Driessen is specialized in architectural photography, portrait, landscape, social documentary and panorama. As a freelance photographer he also works for Maastricht University.

Work:

Staircase De Witte Dame, Eindhoven,1994

Staircase Dutch Architecture Institute [Café Coenen],Rotterdam,1994

Staircase Landbouwbelang, Maastricht,1995

Staircase Landbouwbelang, Maastricht,1995

Jorgen Polman creates his own world in photography and gives space to his imagination. In his photographs everything has been devised, planned, prepared and executed to a perfection in the smallest detail. From 1990, before the Digital Revolution, he was working on "sandwich negatives" and analogue photo montages. He directs his own situations and characters, enlarges and reduces them, adds color manually to his black-and-white photographs. He draws attention to the landscape by sharp contrasts of light and darkness. Due to the precise way of working, it often takes a long time, even months before a collage is finished.

Polman was also a teacher at the Fotoacademie Eindhoven from 2011-2014, and founder of ‘Podium and Forum Beeldtaal’.

Work:

From the series Twilight 5 works:  The people in the photos often have to pose for more than half an hour; as long as it took to illuminate the nocturnal environment with a special flash.

Children's Dreams   Initially the cars served as toys – later on they were picked from a French carnival to bring to life a new child's dream: "Children's dreams" as the portrayal of adult daydreams, a wish to return to the lighthearted days of our youth.   Apart from the children and the cars, all the elements have been handmade on a scale of 1: 2, all within six weeks.

From the series Projector 3 works:  Man portrayed in our mechanized modern world. Vast landscapes contrasting sharply with the hectic day-to-day life in hasty and crowded living environments. By leaving out this 'background noise' a sense of isolation is created that gives rise to questions.

Mieke Derickx