© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Marco Dragone with friends', 2019 from the series 'Dragone' 

I met the work of Jonna Bruinsma through the Blurring the Lines network. Her graduation work was a finalist of the 2019 international call. Last year also decided to include the ongoing series 'Dragone' in the upcoming edition of the Ragusa Foto Festival, in Sicily, Italy. So I am pleased to introduce her work in the Journal of Urbanautica. To start, Jonna, how and when did your interest in photography start?

Jonna Bruinsma: My love for photography started at a very early age. I always told my parents that I wanted to be an ‘artist’. How and what kind of an artist, I did not know. But I knew I wanted to do something creative in my future. As a child, my parents took me to art lessons. I admit - I wasn’t great at drawing. I was always jealous of people who could draw accurate lines and realistic portraits. That was not me; I did not have the patience. But my teacher told me that I had a good eye for colours and light. So instead, during these lessons, I learned to observe and create. We were told that the results didn’t have to be perfect, you just had to create something.

In high school, I was also lucky enough to have an amazing art teacher. We went on a trip to Paris and I remember it was the first time in my life that I started to capture all kinds of images with my camera. My teacher asked me to reflect on the photographs and add a story to each of them. This is when I was introduced to narrative photography for the first time. Directly after graduating from high school, I moved to Italy for six months. It was here that I began capturing people and their everyday lives, which I later turned into mini-documentary series when I was back in the Netherlands. Eventually, it was my submission of these images that landed me in art school. I think that’s where my true passion for photography began; during my studies. School opened up many opportunities for me.

Where did you grow up? Do you remember any particular place that you want to tell us about?

JB: I was born and raised in Amsterdam. Until I was 21, I lived in the same house located near the Jordaan area. Amsterdam is a beautiful place to grow up. I still love to spend time in my parent’s house - it never gets old, it’s where I feel most at home.
I think my creative side was sparked by a place my parents used to take us to: Orselina. My father had two aunts in the Monastery here. It’s located near Lago Maggiore, the Italian part of Switzerland. The Monastery was located on a mountain that was closed by long gates, on which endless pink and white oleanders grew. Once inside, there was an oasis of peace. We used to stay there every year for a week or two. The aunts would tell us old stories about our family and about the war. The other nuns taught me to weave, paint, and play the piano. I think I visited there for almost ten years in a row as a child. When the aunts died, we never went back. It’s a place I will never forget and one which brought me the important connection I have with Italy today. I am actually playing with the idea to go back once and make a documentary about this Monastery. Maybe in the future.

Family album, Jonna Bruinsma and her brother at Orsolina, Lake Maggiore, Italy

Family album, view from the Monastery'

Have you studied at HKU - University of the Arts, Utrecht, The Netherlands? Tell us about how your photographic research and awareness matured during your studies?

JB: Yes, I have. During the first two years of my studies, I was still searching a lot. I had always been interested in social subjects in Amsterdam and knew I wanted to look for places in the city that were still unknown to me. What really helped me find my own style was looking at the work of famous photographers. One of the first photographers I got to know was Alec Soth. I think he is one of the masters when it comes to photography. His series ‘Sleeping by the Mississippi’, where he shoots intimate portraits of people living by the Mississippi river, inspired me get close to my subject. You can see that Alec Soth took his time making these images, and that’s why they seem so pure to me. Doug Dubois is another photographer who inspired me. He had done a project about youth in England and he had captured his own family, to which he had also become very close with his camera. The more I looked at the work of these photographers, the more my interest in documentary photography grew.
I started to focus on different neighbourhoods in Amsterdam for a while, and got to know the people here. I was increasingly able to photograph in people’s homes and to make more intimate portraits. First, I worked digital, however, it was then my ex-boyfriend’s mother who gave me a Mamiya C220 to make portraits with. It was passed down from her father, so it was a very old machine. As difficult as it was to work with, it created beautiful images. This was my first introduction to medium format film and film in general. From then on, I only wanted to work in analogue. The process while working in analogue is so different in comparison to digital. Because there aren’t endless opportunities to make a good image, your focus is much higher. You take more time for one image and because your subject has to wait, it’s then easier to freeze a moment in time. In my opinion, this often creates a unique image which is much more difficult or perhaps impossible to achieve with a digital camera.

© Jonna Bruinsma, one of the first pictures she took with her Mamiya C220

Another thing that helped me with my growth as a photographer was my internship period. I went to New York with Jan Hoek to assist him with a project in a psychiatric hospital. The project was called ‘Mental Superpowers’. For the first time in my life, I was standing in the working field and being the right-hand man of an artist who works on a project with their heart and soul. I had never before seen what it was like to be a photographer in practice. We worked on this project for three months. I think after this period in my life, I knew for sure I wanted to become a photographer myself. I started working harder to achieve my goals and began thinking about what I really wanted to do and who I wanted to be as an artist. What was the story I wanted people to tell?
From that moment on, I felt the strong need to go to Italy and start a project there. I had lived there and had been to visit almost every year. It had always felt like a second home to me after the Netherlands. I had read a lot about aging in the south of Italy. I first went do to some research and quickly began a small project in Ostuni. The work I was making in Italy was received really well. After this, I decided to focus the entire last year of my school studies in the south of Italy. It has been really good for me to choose this path. Before I made work in Italy I focussed on a lot of different things but never knew exactly what I wanted. The search for who you are as a creator takes a very long time and - in all honesty - in my case it is not yet finished. And maybe it will never finish. It is a process where it has helped me enormously to try different things, gain a lot of experience and take inspiration from other artists. And, most importantly, to have fun whilst creating things.

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Youth of Ostuni', 2018

What did you like about the faculty? Was there a teacher you particularly admired and why?

JB: What I liked most about HKU is that it was a very free school; free in the sense that you really had many possibilities as a creator. You never had to choose one specific direction. You were not forced to work with just photography but were allowed to work with all kinds of different mediums. I believe that’s why my class was made up of much more than just people who could take ‘good’ photographs. Some eventually graduated with a film degree, some with an installation and many took other paths. We were not only taught to create images, but rather to convey a certain idea or feeling from one artist to another. We were all very different people, with very different styles. Therefore, we were constantly forced to talk about each other's work which gave us all a fresh perspective. To this day, I think this still influences my work.
The student-teacher relationship was personal. In the last year, the teachers almost treated us like colleagues. One teacher, in particular, I appreciated the most was Stefanie Gratz. She was always honest and did a lot for her students. Others I also really appreciated included Petra Stavast and Mirjam de Zeeuw. They both were very creative with the assignments they set and they were extremely helpful during my graduation year. To this day, I know for sure if I want to talk about photography work or projects, I can always call them. The study not only contributed to my development as a creator, but also as a person.

Then, your thesis. Tell us what motivated the direction you took? Why this theme?

JB: My thesis was mostly research for my graduation project. I started writing from the subject ‘encounter’ and analysed this subject in a philosophical and sociological way. For me, this was important research because meeting a stranger had always been a starting point in my personal projects. A large part of my thesis consisted of researching aspects of Italian culture. What I found particularly interesting was the difference between the North and South and the important role that family plays within their lifestyle. By doing research on the Southern part of Italy, I was introduced to the term ‘la Bella Figura’. The statement ‘fare la bella figura’ is very much related to the importance of status; to create the appearance of success and prosperity above all else. It doesn’t necessarily have to go well, as long as it looks good. The sense of beauty that many people find characteristic of Italians is very expressive. The meaning of this statement explains a lot about the work I make in Italy. Writing my thesis definitely helped me to understand the meaning of my own work more.

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Miki Dragone', 2019, from the series 'Dragone' 

The Netherlands is a country that offers a lot for those who love photography. Important institutions, galleries, and above all schools, resources. Italy on the other hand, well it's pretty on the opposite side. Isn't it a challenge for your research?

JB: If I’m honest, I find this a difficult question to answer. I think there are actually a lot of opportunities in Italy as well, however the organisation is much more chaotic. For me personally, Italy gave me some incredible experiences. All of the people I met were beyond helpful and hospitable. I had some beautiful opportunities for exhibitions and talks in Italy. I think Holland can offer more infrastructure for sure. For example, when I’m in Bari there is no way I can develop my film - I have to go back to Amsterdam. Here, you can find 5 different shops to develop your film. If my camera is broken, I jump on my bike to go to a special store to let someone check it. In the south of Italy however, a store like this is considerably harder to find. I’m aware of the fact that I’m very privileged to live in a city where a lot is available in the artistic field. I think in the long term, the path to success in Italy is more complicated, but I accepted that challenge.

The Dragone family, how did you come into contact with them and how did you establish and develop your relationship?

JB: In February 2019 I began my graduation project. A few months earlier, I had completed a small project about ageing and the effect this had on the young generation in Southern Italy. I did this in Ostuni. During this same period I discovered Bari, the capital city of Puglia, and immediately fell in love. Here, there are strong contrasts. The city is chic and glorious, but also run down and shabby. In the historical center, which used to be in hands of the mafia twenty years ago, lives a community made up of close families with religious and traditional beliefs and values. I was intrigued by the young people I saw on the street here. They are either dressed from head to toe in designer clothing, cruising along the streets on their motorbikes or sat bored on benches along the Lungomare. The images of this city stayed in my head. This is why I decided to go back there for my graduation project.

Once I was back there, I took long walks through the city every day. That’s where I ran into Miky Dragone. He is the third son of a huge family living in the historical center of Bari. I got into a conversation with him and asked if I could take a portrait of him. I remember that he was not shy at all, he even loved posing for the photo. Because of him, I started getting to know his other brothers and family members. Before long, they started inviting me to their house to have lunch with them. Real Italian lunch, where you will eat for 3 hours straight. Of course, I accepted the invitation. From then on, I became friends with this family. I started capturing everyone and even gave Miky and his brothers' small point & shoot cameras because they loved to take photographs too.
This was also a form of communication for us. In Bari Vecchia, the dialect is very strong and hard for me to follow.
Yet without having a lot of complicated conversations, I still built a connection with this family. I spent time with the brothers and had lunch at their grandmother's house. Sometimes, I felt embarrassed when I was invited to lunch again. So I often brought sweets or a bottle of wine to compensate. Then, one day, the uncle spoke sternly to me and forbade me to bring any more presents. ‘You shouldn’t spend money on us, you are a guest here’ he said.
The boys always wanted to take pictures. When we went ‘in giro’ they invited their friends so that they could also have their picture taken. I stayed for a few weeks and came back many times that year. I’ve always received the warmest welcome from the Dragone family. I brought them prints of the photos I took which were immediately hung in the house or in the pizzeria the family owns. When I wasn’t in Italy, I would sometimes FaceTime Miky or we would speak to each other via Instagram. That’s how we kept in touch.
The city of Bari has become my second home. In July 2019, I graduated with a book about the family. I made this book together with two graphic designers, Sjon de Baron and Sean van den Steenhoven. We combined my images and the images the boys made in one book, to show their environment from different perspectives.
I gave this book to the family in September 2019. The contact is less intense now, but I still have all of the family members on Instagram. I know I will always have a home with them.

© Jonna Bruinsma, book scan 'Dragone', 2019. Designed by Sens Studio

© Jonna Bruinsma, book scan 'Dragone', 2019. Designed by Sens Studio

© Jonna Bruinsma, book scan 'Dragone', 2019. Designed by Sens Studio 

© Jonna Bruinsma, book scan 'Dragone', 2019. Designed by Sens Studio

© Jonna Bruinsma, book scan 'Dragone', 2019. Designed by Sens Studio

From a methodological point of view, what are the important choices you have made?

JB: In any case, an important choice has been to take the risk of visiting a place that fascinated me. I was alone and I didn't really know exactly what I wanted, but I was forced to just start creating. It doesn't work for me to spend hours in front of my laptop or a book until I've thought of a perfect idea. It also doesn't work for me to research a place for days on end. I don’t want to go with a lot of expectations. It works better for me to just start and let the process happen organically. I remember coming back from Bari for the first time and 3 film rolls had failed because there was a problem with my camera. I mainly work with analogue, so there’s not always a plan B. I was convinced that there were beautiful pictures of Miky and his family, but there were not. This was incredibly frustrating but it also motivated me more to go back and make even better images. Another very important choice for the project was that I let the boys document their own environment. These photos are aesthetically far from perfect, but they clearly show their lives in a raw way. By doing this I had given them their own voices and in turn it showed the environment from two perspectives. This is something I had not done before and it was a new development for me as a creator. I especially noticed that when I took pictures, the boys posed a lot and were concerned with what they looked like - especially whether or not they looked tough enough. Miky even dyed his hair once and always made sure to put on his best suit when I came to take photographs. But when they had the cameras in their hands, no one paid attention to appearance. Purer scenes were recorded. Therefore, these have certainly been important choices as they led to interesting twists and turns for the project.

The project collects images of the boys made in their home environment. A way to access an otherwise almost invisible intimacy. What kind of relationship was created with these young people and how was your work received?

JB: As I mentioned before; even though we didn't communicate very much, our connection was strong. Sometimes, I noticed that the boys were feeling bored. The rhythm in Bari is always the same. The parents work a lot, the grandmothers cook and clean or sit on chairs in front of their house. The boys sometimes go to school, but they also hang out on the street for days on end. When I came by with my camera, it felt like they were introduced to something new - something exciting. Then, they called their friends that the photographer from Amsterdam was back and they all wanted to be portrayed, or they made photos themselves. I think once you gain trust and enter a place like this, the people are very open. My work was received so positively. Not only in the Netherlands but also in Italy, and that gave me a lot of motivation to move on with this project.

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Davide Dragone', 2019 from the series 'Dragone' 

Have you always felt like an alien, or have you gained attention and trust in the neighbourhood?

JB: The longer I was in Bari and the more I saw the family, the more I felt at home in this community. In the beginning, I really felt like an outsider and to be honest, I can still have this feeling sometimes.
An example of this is when I am with the family and everyone is shouting together in a strong dialect, or when I walk through the city with my camera and people stare at me. In their eyes, you remain a "stranger" because you speak a different language and look a different way. Bari Vecchia is very different from the place where I live and the people have different norms and values. It's quite a traditional place. A woman alone is not something that many people there are familiar with. Sometimes I get the question if I am already married and where my boyfriend is.

I realise all too well that as a photographer I remain an outsider who invades other people’s lives. This is why I prefer to bond with people and then when they feel comfortable, capture their surroundings. If this is not possible, I am at peace with that. I see it as a blessing that I get to know more and more people in the neighbourhood. When I recently returned and approached a group of young people to ask if I could take a picture, they said that they already knew me; that I was the infamous photographer of the old town. They already trusted me because of the stories they had heard, which made it easier for me to create new images. So yes, I think I’m definitely building more and more confidence in the neighbourhood.

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Nunzia Dragone', 2019 from the series 'Dragone' 

After your thesis, more recently you returned to Puglia to carry on the project. Why? What did you want to add to your previous work?

JB: That's right, I recently went back to Bari. I have never seen "Dragone" as a finished project. For me, this is a long-term project. I went back in September 2020. I wanted to know how the boys were doing and how corona had impacted the family and community of Bari. I didn't necessarily want to add anything to my old work, but I wanted to develop it further in the same place. Due to corona, I had also been sitting still for a long time and I had not made new images for months. Once I was back in Italy, I got a lot of inspiration to do this. I once again began all kinds of small projects that I will now expand further. With Dragone, I mainly focused on that specific family and their lives seen from different perspectives. Now, I am focusing more on the entire community of Bari Vecchia. I have met other families, captured young people and also started taking portraits in a barbershop. I think I will always continue to follow Miky Dragone. He has in a sense been the starting point for making images in Bari, and that is why he continues to play an important role in my work. I think we have built up a special bond, I really see him as a kind of little brother who I am very curious about how he will develop in the coming years.

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Bari Vecchia' (Miky Dragone), 2020

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Bari Vecchia', 2020

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Bari Vecchia', 2020

You were back in Italy in a difficult period, in which the world was and is suffering from a serious pandemic. How much has this affected you? 

JB: In Puglia I noticed that people were more stressed than in the period before corona. There were less tourism and less crowded restaurants. The Dragone family has two pizzerias. During the period that I was there, it had to close a few times. I saw that this caused a lot of concern and in turn created a much less relaxed atmosphere. Where I used to find the family together in the living room every day to eat lunch together, was now often an empty space. Grandma was sometimes sick or people had to stay inside. This was a reason for me not to stop by too often, or when I visited I did not always take my camera with me. I didn't want to be a burden to the family. I was sad about this in the beginning, that everything was so different. Not being able to do things the way I had before forced me to shift my focus. I took walks and met people in all kinds of different places. I was often told "no". I think people were a little more wary. So the pandemic certainly has an impact on making work, the distance makes it more difficult to talk to strangers and even more difficult to get to people's homes. Yet it has also brought me new things. If you suddenly have to do something else, you are forced to be very creative. I photographed a lot more outside again, which I actually hadn't done for quite some time. I was always very much in my head with the topics "home" and "family", yet now I realised that there are so many more interesting topics in Bari and that I had not yet discovered. It was sometimes difficult because there were more setbacks, but in the end it turned out to be a very fruitful period for me. The pandemic gave me a lot more time to write, which I did far too little at first. This helps me more to reflect on my work and process.

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Bari Vecchia', 2020

What goals have you set yourself, and what goals do you want to achieve now?

JB: I think my primary goal was to get to a place where different generations live together and to follow them closely. Now that this has been achieved, my goal is to dive deeper into that place - to see what else is going on, why there are such strong traditions and how you see that in daily life. I also want to experience what it is like for young people to grow up in a city like Bari. I think my ultimate goal is to document the society of Bari as much as possible and to learn more and more about Southern Italian culture. It's something that I believe I will work on for years to come, hopefully creating a documentary series. Of course I realise that I am not from Bari myself and therefore want to take as much time as possible to get to know the culture well. I not only want to take something with me and use it for my own success, but I also want the society to benefit from it. I know the people like to be portrayed, they are proud of who they are and like to show it off. By portraying them I already give back that bit of pride. 

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Bari Vecchia', 2020

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Bari Vecchia', 2020

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Bari Vecchia', 2020

Let's talk more about you. How does photography fit into your life? What would you like to dedicate yourself to? 

JB: If I could choose, I would like to continue with my free work and also do some more commissioned work. I only graduated one year ago and it is not the easiest period due to corona so I am also very much looking for the perfect balance. In any case, I think that the years after you graduate (from art academy) are still quite uncertain. You are no longer obliged to do anything and are suddenly completely on your own. I sometimes find this quite paralysing, I have to keep pushing myself to keep busy. 

But when I am busy again, when I am creating new things, it feels me with an energy that I wouldn’t get anywhere else. When I get appreciation for what I make, it reaffirms all of my choices and motivates me to make even more. My next goal is to apply for a fund so that I can further develop this project. As I said, I'm writing a lot more now. I think that in these months, when not much is happening, it’s good to use this time well. 

We know photography is an uncertain definition. And in strong evolution. Today a photographer must know the whole supply chain, be an entrepreneur, deal with communication, graphics, marketing, fund-raising? A difficult challenge, don't you think?

JB: That is correct. As a photographer, you have to be very versatile as a self-employed person. It is not an easy profession. On the one hand, I really enjoy having to do so many different things, it is never boring. What I do have difficulty with is that we at the art academy did not learn about the business side of the profession at all. You are not trained with the thought of ever making money. How do you sell a print? How much do you charge for a commercial assignment? You all graduate as a self-employed person, but have no idea of how the business side works. These are all things that I have had to teach myself, and am still learning. That is a point of criticism when I look back at my studies. Furthermore, it is part of teaching yourself many different skills. This takes a lot of time and patience, but is also fun. Being an independent artist means working your ass of, I have noticed that more than ever this year. 

We also know that the media play a fundamental role in promoting and disseminating one's work. What relationship do you have with these tools?

JB: It’s a love-hate relationship for sure. I think Social Media, especially Instagram, is one of the most important platforms to showcase your work these days. If you had previously done an assignment or completed a project, you would have probably put it on your website first. Now, you go straight to Instagram. People who want to view your portfolio are often the first to look at your Instagram. It is the new calling card for almost everyone and therefore it should always look good and up to date. Throughout the day you can see the latest campaigns, commercials, or personal projects appear on this platform. While this is a positive thing, it also takes away from the value of a photograph. There are advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand, I like to use Instagram as a work tool. I have already discovered many good artists and photographers, and I have even got to know some of them personally. I am also convinced that artists have gained a greater audience reach through this platform. On the other hand, I don't think it's good that there seems to be a kind of rush in the creative process. I once read the phrase "stop rushing your projects for social media” and that really resonated with me. Sometimes, I forget that I am creating work because I like it, because I studied for it or because I want to introduce others to my visual world. Then suddenly I only think in Instagram posts. I actually think that's a shame. Making work still has to come from within yourself. In the end, I'd rather have ten people hold a physical print of mine than get 400 likes on an Instagram post. I think there is a certain pressure on us created by this platform, or that we put a certain pressure on ourselves that is sometimes ridiculously high. This is because every day you are bombarded with everything that is made, which sometimes makes it feel almost like a competition.

For myself I think that balance is very important. For now I am grateful that I am able to use Instagram as a tool that I can make my work visible to so many different people. I genuinely enjoy sharing my work and it motivates me as a creator to get positive feedback. It is also very nice that it increases the chance of work on an assignment. But sometimes I have to stay away from this platform for a few days and stick to my own vision. I want to be inspired by other makers but not forget what I stand for myself. I think that's important to remember.

© Jonna Bruinsma, 'Bari Vecchia' (double exposure), 2020

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LINKS
Jonna Bruinsma 
Urbanautica The Nethernlands