Populated Landscapes

Selection from the collections of Thomas Pedersen and Dorte and Poul Pedersen.

My knowledge of the collections dates back to the early 1970s, when I was an apprentice at Photographers Thomas and Poul Pedersen in Aarhus. Father and son.

In free moments I was given permission to explore the black folders. If there were any works that interested me, I was allowed to photograph them and make a copy. But it was expressly stated that it was for personal use only.

The collections are built around artists who worked in and around Aarhus. There are also artists from the rest of the country, but this is often because they have exhibited or had decoration tasks in Aarhus.

Both Thomas and Poul were very involved in the Aarhus art life. Both sat for periods on the boards of the local art associations and art societies.

Thomas Pedersen (1900-75) worked as a portrait photographer. And many of the artist portraits adorn the folders where the associated artist's works are hidden.

Poul Pedersen (1928-2019) was an art and architecture photographer. He worked for many of the Jutlandic museums and through this got in touch with the exhibiting artists. The collection also reflects that Poul Pedersen, as an architectural photographer, has had contact with many of the artists who have done decoration tasks om buildings in and around Aarhus.

They both diligently bought up works by the artists they worked with, and gladly exchanged their photographic work for graphics.

I have browsed the more than 4,000 works that the collections contain, and for this exhibition I have, based on my chosen title: POPULATED LANDSCAPES, selected 59 graphic works distributed among 20 artists.

Many graphic techniques are represented in the selection, and in terms of time the works span over 100 years from 1891 to 1991.

The works I have selected have motifs that, in addition to an implied landscape, are spirited by animals and people. With the combination of landscape and animal/human, the artist creates the basis for a story that the viewer can build on.

It has been an incredible but also overwhelming gift to be allowed to study the varied collection. The selection should reflect the versatility of the collection. Some of the artists have always been close to me and others are new discoveries.

Enjoy.
Lars Abrahamsen