Being Human

Featuring Albert Elm Words by Nastasia Khmelnitski

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Albert Elm is a photographer based in the beautiful city of Copenhagen, Denmark. Soon after deciding to leave high school, Albert proceeded to sail for a certain period in his life. Motivated by finding passion in pursuit of happiness and freedom of making one’s own decisions, he decided to enter the establishment that answered the requirements. Discovering a strong interest in cinematography, Albert started to consume films spending most of his time in the library. He graduated with a BA (Hons) in Fine Art Photography from the Glasgow School of Art after studying in Fatamorgana in Copenhagen. 

Contemplating the surrounding events, people busy with being in this world, the state of the physical elements; Albert presents reality in a way that evokes a feeling of detachment and enables a viewer to observe the situation from the macro perspective. The practice of transcending the familiar, crossing the borderline to reveal additional senses once numb is made attainable through letting in the new visual experience. Traveling the world, Albert meets new people, learns their stories while overcoming the challenge of finding one's way in an unfamiliar location across the globe.

Albert tells us about his experience in the School of Art, working for 8 years on a book analyzing his work and technique. We discuss the vision and the angle from which a photographer or an artist can present the world in a new perspective to the viewer but a very intimate one to the creator. This differentiation of the perception is an ultimate element to become distinct and stand out in the era of accessibility and flood of opportunities online. Albert shares with us the short term plans and reveals the topic that is most fascinating for him to continue discovering.

‘Art school helped establish some kind of intellectual appetite. But it was a bit of a cold turkey, having to adapt to the real world again after graduating.’

Hi Albert, we’re so happy to have you on our mag with this interview. How have you been doing?

Thank you for reaching out! I've been doing okay. A bit overwhelmed since I'm moving out of my apartment. But also excited about some change.

Tell about Copenhagen, what are your favorite cafes or places in the city?

I like going to the canal in the summer. One thing I love about Copenhagen is that you are always close to the water. And the water in the harbor is fresh and clean. So if you are strolling around the city in the summer, you can always take a swim, sit, have a beer, and walk somewhere else when you are dry. If I had to choose just one place, I would choose the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, north of Copenhagen. My favorite museum in the world. The beautiful art collection, but mostly a wonderful place. There is a beautiful sculpture park with exotic trees overlooking the ocean and Sweden. 

Let’s compare, what was the subject you enjoyed at school the most, and what did you like to study during your years at the Glasgow School of Art? What do you think changed during the years?

I really enjoyed studying by myself, generally. I loved going to the library, looking at books and magazines. I would take out a lot of films too, categorically going through directors, whom I found important. Watching as many films as I could during a day. What has changed me the most is probably having experienced that kind of freedom. Having been able to do more or less what I wanted to during the week. Art school helped establish some kind of intellectual appetite. But it was a bit of a cold turkey, having to adapt to the real world again after graduating. With freedom comes responsibility. But I think it's important that I have that feeling of freedom to aspire to.

‘I wouldn't advise anyone to drop out of school. But I wouldn't encourage anyone to force themselves through an education that makes them frustrated and unhappy either.’

You have actually decided to leave school at the age of 16, and you’ve been working for some time before you started the degree. What would you advise young people today who face the same decision?  

Yes, I dropped out of High School/Gymnasium. I grew tired of worrying about homework. It became a burden that dragged me down. I couldn't make sense of it at the time. My mother didn't think it was a good idea for me to move to the capital alone so young, so I went out sailing on different ships for some time. I wouldn't advise anyone to drop out of school. But I wouldn't encourage anyone to force themselves through an education that makes them frustrated and unhappy either. I think the most important thing in life is to have a passion that keeps you motivated and fulfilled. If you are dragging yourself through your studies, you are probably studying the wrong thing.

You have been working for several years on your book What Sort of Life Is This. What are some elements you have discovered about yourself as a person or a professional during this process?

I made that book for a period of eight years. I got to know myself better, artistically. Both because I started to shoot very intuitively with a point and shoot camera. Not thinking too much. After a while, I started to see patterns in the material. How I would return to certain subjects. I just let my subconsciousness work freely and then analyze it later. I guess that's what “follow your gut feeling” is.

It's interesting to look at one's own work in retrospect. I definitely understand myself better now from looking through my archive. As if it is a refinement of the past in some way. - Notes on the state of mind you were in at the time but didn't yet understand. It can be very difficult to go through old material. It shakes up the same feelings that you felt at the time, all these years later. I imagine it's much the same as picking up an old diary.

Professionally, I think it's the most important lesson - publishing a book. It is rewarded in the end for being patient and stubborn. Start a project, engage in it, and finish it as well as you can. It's a very nice process. The one you get addicted to. I think.

‘I think the only thing left for a photographer is to share how he/she experiences the world. Not only visually. But emotionally, spiritually, intellectually, etc. There aren't many unphotographed square meters left on this planet.’

Your photos are an unexpected twist on the reality you observe yet in an uncanny, bizarre statement. How would you describe, in three words, which parts of the frame can make an image appear as eccentric? 

I really don't know. If I was following a recipe, I think my work would become predictable pretty quickly. The strength of photography is the openness and the ambiguity of a picture. But those are the same things that make the medium challenging, sometimes incomprehensible. How do you add something to a common, visual language, that hasn't already been added? How do you contribute to this dialog we have, about what it means to be human, without repeating yourself or someone else? 

I think the only thing left for a photographer is to share how he/she experiences the world. Not only visually. But emotionally, spiritually, intellectually, etc. There aren't many unphotographed square meters left on this planet. But maybe the point is how we see the same things differently. I'm personally interested in depicting the world in the simplest way I possibly can. I watched a documentary about cave paintings the other day. Simple and timeless depictions about what occupied people's imagination 32,000 years ago. I guess it isn't much different from what I try to do as a photographer. Making images about what joins my imaginative life with my reality. 

What is the mistake you can share with us from which you not only learned but developed your signature or skill?

I'm not sure I can recall a specific mistake. But, I think, as I mentioned earlier, starting from scratch with a point and shoot camera changed a lot for me. And generally trying to keep things simple. The direct flash triggered an obsession with color. And I think as I grew more and more interested in color, I became more intrigued with the use of color in painting.

Name two photographers that left an impact on this medium, in your opinion. What do you think distinguishes their work and makes it recognizable? 

Daido Moriyama and Wolfgang Tillmans. They both taught me that anything can be photographed. Both seem to be photographing their lives as they live it. I love it when photography and arts, in general, succeed in making a great show out of the ordinary. 

There’s your photo, from What Sort of Life Is This, of a hand that lacks several phalanges (might be from the severe cold). Do you tend to speak with people you include in your images? What is the fascinating story you have heard? 

Sometimes I talk to people. I don't really have a plan or a formula. I just do what feels right at the moment. And also what I can grasp at that moment. Photographing in the streets in an unfamiliar city alone is a psychological process for me. I haven't done it a while. Anyway, I ran into this guy in the street in Novosibirsk in Siberia. I asked him if I could take a picture of his hand. He didn't mind. Apparently, he hurt his hand in some kind of electric shock accident. 

‘Art is at least as important now as it ever was. I think of it as some kind of substitute for religion. People need something that gives their lives meaning and purpose. It's our tool for self-evaluation.’

‘I think ‘being human’ will be my topic for the rest of my life. It both worries and intrigues me. It seems banal and overwhelmingly complex at the same time.’

Do you have a phobia? 

Stagnation. If I feel I'm stagnating, I get really distressed. 

What’s a topic you would like to explore and study that intrigues or perhaps worries you? Do you think photography or art in general can make an impact and a change? 

I think ‘being human’ will be my topic for the rest of my life. It both worries and intrigues me. It seems banal and overwhelmingly complex at the same time. 

I definitely think art is at least as important now as it ever was. I think of it as some kind of substitute for religion. People need something that gives their lives meaning and purpose. It's our tool for self-evaluation. I do think it's threatened and “cheapened” by an increasingly commercialized art world. And by people who are more passionate about ‘likes’ and attention than contributing to a dialogue. But it's also really exciting, so many people want to be a part of the creative world. I guess it means more and more people are curious and open to change. 

What’s next?

I'm nearly finished with my next book. I've been working on it for a couple of years now and reached a point where I'm struggling to add more.