ANDERSEN, Morten - Country. Rock

Background information

"This photo volume, 'Country.Rock' by Morten ANDERSEN, is the result of several trips to northern Norway over a period of 3-4 years. The book shows the harsh climate and vast, untouched northern terrain of a small, remote community. The Norwegian photographer approaches documentary photography in a rather unusual way: he positions the images in 'Country.Rock' against the backdrop of a science fiction-inspired, post-apocalyptic narrative. In the imagined future of one Morten ANDERSEN, a catastrophic event has rendered Europe's urban centers uninhabitable. Survivors - most of them still young - have migrated north, established new communities and developed new ways of life. The North is conceived as a refuge from the political and social defeats of the past; a blank slate for building a radical, post-capitalist future. Bleak, snow-covered landscapes appear mostly untouched by human activity. Occasionally, figures are visible gazing into the mist-shrouded distance, recalling 19th century Romantic painting. Elsewhere, images of rubble combine the present with that of science fiction-like, post-collapse premise.
Morten ANDERSEN juxtaposes the deliberately framed, sublime view of nature with the spontaneity and energy of the Karlsøy Festival in Troms. The island of Troms has been considered a free haven for radicals, artists as well as hippies since the 1970s. In these images, people gather and celebrate under the midnight sun. The Norwegian calls the free-spirited, multicultural rock festival a possible model of a future society. Thus, the photo book 'Country.Rock' is a book about escape from the political and social failures of our time, but also about myths, dreams and nature. The landscape may be bleak and challenging, but there is hope for the future, with beauty and freedom.

Additional information

The artist book 'Country.Rock' by Morten ANDERSEN is already his 21st photo book. It represents the indirect continuation of the photo book 'Untitled.Cities' (2013), which explored the alienation and decay in European cities. Unlike 'Untitled.Cities', the visual storytelling in 'Country.Rock' implies a more optimistic outlook even after disaster and collapse." (freely translated, © Morten ANDERSEN, 2017)

About the Norwegian photographer, Morten ANDERSEN (b. 1965, in Akershus)

Photo books by Morten ANDERSEN