Willem Popelier
works with photography
As a visual artist, Willem Popelier buys ID photos of himself. He stands in front of webcams and security cameras. He photographs himself posing as female topmodels, or as Kim Kardashian. He stacks prints of every video speech of Barack Obama on top of each other. And he buys newspapers when someone dies.
Willem Popelier is intrigued by how society treats photography: he focusses on the mechanisms and politics of representation. He researches the generally accepted ways in which photos are used, and how identity is represented and perceived through photography. Thus his focus is mostly on popular culture, the ubiquitous image and its effects on society.
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"What are we actually looking at in a photograph?"
– Katja Müller-Helle on Popelier's work
"Just how should I expose myself?"
– Stine Jensen on Showroom Girls
"How do we treat images?"
– Willem Popelier in his Artist statement
News
The Do-It-Yourselfie Guide published in a new Spanish Edition as Tu Mejor Selfi.
The Do-It-Yourselfie Guide is published in a Spanish edition as Tu Mejor Selfi at Libros Cúpula, Barcelona, an Imprint of Editorial Planeta. Tu mejor selfi – La guía definitica para capturar la mejor versión de ti mismo. Get your copy here.
Corona still lifes during Covid lockdown.
During the first Covid-19 lockdown and the period following the lockdown, Nienke Draaisma and Willem Popelier focussed on the daily lives of kids, who were unable to go to school and unable to play with their friends. Draaisma and Popelier asked kids what toys mattered most to them during this period, to create Corona still lifes. (text in Dutch only).
Rejected identities in Gallery of Honour of Dutch Photography.
The Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam presents The Gallery of Honour of Dutch Photography, that showcases 99 photographs from 180 years of photography in the Netherlands. These images were selected based on their artistic and social relevance, innovation, and diversity of perspective and have iconic value due to their social and artistic significance. Rejected Identities is selected as one of the 99 photographs. The show is on permanent display at the museum and there is a publication showing the entire selection.
Recent project Ephemeral photographs.
Ephemeral Photographs investigates photography as a volatile medium, to question the value we assign to photos that we share with each other every day online. Ephemeral Photographs is a multi-layered and dynamic project in which online and offline are intertwined. The project was firstly shown at Pennings Foundation, Eindhoven, NL. During five weeks of the exhibition, each day a different image could be seen in the foundation and online on Instagram.
News Archive
Work
Ephemeral photographs
Investigating photography as a volatile medium.
Paris error
Documenting abstract and elusive feelings of the Paris terror attacks.
Your weekly president
A contemplative reflection on Barack Obama's 8 years in office as US president.
The do-it-yourselfie guide
Re-enaction of the most famous selfies on earth for the ultimate selfie guide.
En Vogue
Analytical view on the visual language of covers of fashion magazines.
Bruno dash Dutch
Portrayal of Bruno, right after his nationality turned from a dash into Dutch.
Inside Obama's compound
One transposed word and the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and US president is declared dead.
Obscured classified document (situation room)
Emphasising Hillary Clinton's pixelated document in the iconic Situation room picture.
The Osama papers
The visualisation of the death of Osama bin Laden in newspapers worldwide.
Showroom girls
The phenomenon of digital narcissism visualised by tracing two anonymous girls.
Showroom
A selection from thousands of anonymous selfies taken from showroom computers in stores.
This is me & this is me
The act of identifying in private images of an identical twin.
Visual proof of my existence
Collecting as much visual proof of being somewhere without bringing your own camera.
███ and Willem. Documentation of a youth
Questioning modern family relationships and how identity is perceived through photography.
Rejected identities
Focusing on the confrontation between personal identity and obligatory identification photography.
Information
Contact
mail[at]willempopelier.nl
+31(0)6 41 31 03 76
Bio
Willem Popelier is a visual artist working with photography, based in Utrecht, the Netherlands. His focus is on the mechanisms and politics of representation. He researches the generally accepted ways in which photos are used, and how identity is represented and perceived through photography. Thus his focus is mostly on popular culture, the ubiquitous image and its effects on society.
His work is exhibited worldwide, published in magazines such as C Photo and Foam Magazine, awarded with several prizes including a C/O Berlin Talent, a Bronze Medal for Best Book Design from all over the World, and nominated for the ICP Infinity Award and the Prix Pictet, among others. His work is included in the Gallery of Honour of Dutch Photography.
Willem Popelier is tutor and co-course leader at the department of Photography at the Willem de Kooning Academy in Rotterdam and regularly gives lectures and workshops addressing the ubiquitous image, selfies, the role and implementation of artistic research, and more.
Further information
A selection of essays and interviews
Artist statement
Publications
Curriculum Vitae