2nd place
silver star award
Van Belle Servaas
belgium
title
STAL - Vernacular Animal Sheds
“A photograph of a weather-beaten shed is an allegory for our lives: we all muddle on, we try our best, we keep our wits about us, we field some blows along the way, we carry the scars, and we all die on the horizontal in the end. Humans harbour a deep longing for shelter, warmth and security. That’s what makes these wondrous little structures so human. They shine with lack, miscalculations, flaws and shabbiness.”
STAL - VERNACULAR ANIMAL SHEDS
Published by Hannibal Books
Size 24 x 32 cm / 192 pages
www.hannibalbooks.be/en/stal
Soon he left for Senegal in West Africa. What was meant to be a trip of a few months turned into a stay of several years. Among other things, he developed a primary school there.
After seven years in Dakar, he returned to Belgium in 2009, where he began to photograph more intensively and specialized in interior photography. Gradually his work took on a recognizable character.
Van Belle has a great interest in architecture and constructions that at first sight seem banal such as utility buildings, billboards, hunting and observation towers. Transience and the influence of time are key concepts here.
His photo series have already been published in Belgium and The Netherlands.
De Standaard, De Tijd, de Volkskrant NRC,...
back to gallery
entry description
For this unique project, photographer Servaas Van Belle scouted every corner of Belgium to find just the right kind of shed, always photographing them in the same perfect lighting conditions. And for Van Belle ‘perfect’ means in a haze of fog. Livestock shelters in meadows and fields are so common in the Belgian landscape and culture that nobody ever pays them any attention. Nonetheless, the countryside offers quite a range of architectural gems. These sheds and barns are the product of man and nature, quietly radiating a poignant if decaying beauty. They come in many shapes and sizes, are constructed from motley materials (often recycled) and exhibit a varied colour palette. Clearly showing the ravages of time, they tell wordless stories. For five years he crisscrossed Belgium and created a beautiful and harmonious monograph, both in visual language and content.“A photograph of a weather-beaten shed is an allegory for our lives: we all muddle on, we try our best, we keep our wits about us, we field some blows along the way, we carry the scars, and we all die on the horizontal in the end. Humans harbour a deep longing for shelter, warmth and security. That’s what makes these wondrous little structures so human. They shine with lack, miscalculations, flaws and shabbiness.”
STAL - VERNACULAR ANIMAL SHEDS
Published by Hannibal Books
Size 24 x 32 cm / 192 pages
www.hannibalbooks.be/en/stal
about the photographer
The Belgian photographer Servaas Van Belle (°1978) grew up in Knokke-Heist and studied 3D multimedia at the KASK in Ghent. At that time photography only played a supporting role, but what was already noticeable was the absence of people in his work. During his student years he went as an Erasmus student to Athens to follow a course in sculpture. Afterwards he completed a academic teacher training course.Soon he left for Senegal in West Africa. What was meant to be a trip of a few months turned into a stay of several years. Among other things, he developed a primary school there.
After seven years in Dakar, he returned to Belgium in 2009, where he began to photograph more intensively and specialized in interior photography. Gradually his work took on a recognizable character.
Van Belle has a great interest in architecture and constructions that at first sight seem banal such as utility buildings, billboards, hunting and observation towers. Transience and the influence of time are key concepts here.
His photo series have already been published in Belgium and The Netherlands.
De Standaard, De Tijd, de Volkskrant NRC,...
back to gallery