Johanna & Jakob
The lustrous sun, tenderly kissing the skin, the breeze of the sea, and the atmosphere of a vacation allow dreaming to become more approachable and boundaries to vanish in the depths of the blue skies above. The romance and the young love that recharges towards a deeper connection during the idle days of the retreat opening up in front of the ever-curious lens invites a viewer into an intimate love story, a life adventure of the couple.
With the series Johanna & Jakob, Lina-Marie explores intuitive photography and creation by building strong relationships with the subjects. Lina-Marie explains her methodology and approach to creating spontaneously, seeking truthful representation through the artistic creation of a narrative, “I wanted my pictures to be as natural as possible. My story is based on reality without any fiction. I want the observer to feel this immediacy.” The combination of black and white and color images encourages the eye to draw connections with cinema and fill in the frames that were not taken and the dialogues not captured to recreate the film-like story in one’s mind.
‘I didn't choose a particular theme in advance, it was more of an intuitive act to take my camera and photograph what happens right in front of me.’
Honestly, I didn't choose a particular theme in advance, it was more of an intuitive act to take my camera and photograph what happens right in front of me. Most of the time, I work like this. This project came to life through the constellation in which we spent our holiday. We were three people spending four days at the seaside, two of them involved in a romance. Soon, I became the observer of the relationship between my friends Johanna and Jakob, whom I met shortly before this trip.
I wanted to capture the feeling of love and intensity that emanated from them. The images tell the story of a young love associated with intimacy, integrity, fragility, and freedom.
‘We spent days at a wonderful campsite, right next to us, the turquoise sea with huge waves breaking on the rocks. It already was an incredible setting.’
I wanted my pictures to be as natural as possible. My story is based on reality without any fiction. I want the observer to feel this immediacy. We didn’t use any makeup or styling for the shooting. I was the art director. Sometimes, I told Johanna and Jakob where to stand, what to wear, or how to move their bodies. But in most cases, the photographs are situational, capturing their natural behaviors: Jakob carving a spoon or Johanna smoking a cigarette. It makes the images familiar and real. A great aesthetic was the surroundings I could use. We spent days at a wonderful campsite, right next to us, the turquoise sea with huge waves breaking on the rocks. It already was an incredible setting.
‘I took all the images on the last day of our trip when I had a very deep connection with them. We didn’t speak a lot. I just photographed them.’
Technically, I didn’t use any special camera equipment, just the natural daylight and my dad’s old digital Canon camera, which I once borrowed and never gave back to him. Normally, I prefer working analog, but sometimes I love seeing my results right away, especially when I work on a whole series like this one.
We didn’t have a team on set. It was just the three of us. Photographing Johanna and Jakob was an intense and flowing experience. Johanna felt the same since she was already used to being photographed by me. Jakob told me it felt very free and spontaneous. He’s fascinated by how the photos turned out, as it felt so natural, even though it was a completely new experience for him, being in front of a camera. I took all the images on the last day of our trip when I had a very deep connection with them. We didn’t speak a lot. I just photographed them. And I think they knew what I wanted. This connection is quite important to me.
