Look with attention, what does your attention focus on? The side your attention chooses can tell you a lot, as Simone Peerdeman (1976) learned. Telling a story in a series of poetic images, making portraits, seeing the special in the small, that is where Peerdeman's strength lies. Unknown worlds close to home are a great source of inspiration. She lives in Zandvoort.
In 2016, Simone Peerdeman graduated cum laude from the Nederlandse Fotovakschool in Amsterdam. Her work has appeared in NRC, De Volkskrant, Het Parool, Kiekiekrant, VPRO KOOS, Pf Magazine, LensCulture Best of Vol. 1, GUP Fresh Eyes 2019, GUP New Photography 2017 and was shown at several international photo festivals.
The 3 selected photos are from the series 'Fish Discover Water Last'.
In 2014, when Simone Peerdeman had lived in Zandvoort for 16 years, she was done with it. As is the case when you live somewhere for a longer period of time, you eventually take your place of residence for granted. She missed the noise and entertainment of a big city. But due to the twilight of the credit crisis, she stayed in Zandvoort. 'How well do I actually know my hometown, how justified is my blind spot?' These questions formed the starting point for the series 'Fish Discover Water Last'. Fish are not aware of water as long as they are in it. This has resulted in a poetic story about (re)discovering a place of residence, identity and creating a world in which someone feels at home.
