Regenerate yourself with Weenen & Houweling

Nov 10, 2011 | by Faye | Art, Event

About the author

Hi! My name is Faye and I will be your guide through Amsterdam for the day! Enjoys randomness chat, good banter and will help you find the best dealers in fun, food and adventure.

Falling in love and doing what we love is something we all try to achieve in life. In most situations it’s hard to find either (this is twenty-four years of experience talking). Yet, two people I know have managed to do both at the same time. Since the birth of Overdose, resident photographers Rutger Houweling and Tamar Weenen have contributed to this cultural magazine by publishing electrifying photographs.

Three years ago they first pursued their craze for photography, and this Saturday you can visit their first exposition at Roest. The exposition, named Regeneration, consists of three series of two portraits each in which Cassette Collectief and Roest intertwine. I had a chitchat with our favourite photogenic duo and wanted to know how passion for a camera and a person combine?

What is Regeneration about and what was your inspiration for the shoot?
Initially we were asked to exhibit during a one-day festival organized by Cassette Collectief, which was supposed to take place at Roest. We decided to create a series of six photos in couples of two featuring a woman versus a man in which both the old-school cassette tapes and old rusty objects were re-used as the models’ accessories. This is the reason we named the series ‘Regeneration’, the old objects are regenerated and used again in this photo shoot.

What do you want the viewer to feel whilst looking at your photos?
We want to leave people in awe about our photos. We like contradictions in our photos, we’re not afraid of using strange objects in the portraits, but at the same time we aim to create beautiful photos. Our portraits are often simple combined with a weird touch, like the model’s strange accessories now.

How do you feel about the location, Roest?
We’re very fond of the location where our photos will be exhibited. For one, the concept of Roest where creatives are offered a public place to come together and are able to show their work to the public is still quite rare in Amsterdam, but very much needed! Additionally, the location itself is very inspiring. The old deteriorated building with its rusty pipes and brick walls is THE spot for us to exhibit this series of photos. We’re very happy to be offered the chance to have our debut exhibition at Amsterdam Roest.

Who are your favorite photographers and why?
We have many favorites but a few of them are of course Anton Corbijn, Erwin Olaf, Inez van Lamsweerde & Vinoodh Matadin and David LaChapelle. In addition, one of our photography teachers Rogier Alleblas has always inspired and encouraged us.

How is it to be a couple and work as a photography duo simuntaneously?
Often it’s a lot of fun to work as a photography duo but sometimes also very difficult! As a single photographer you can take all the decisions without having to consult someone else, as a duo you need to agree on everything, which is not always easy! We solve this by discussing and in the end we always come to an agreement. However, there are many advantages to working as a duo as well, we’ve found that we complement each other in creative ways and also in a technical sense. Usually one of us comes up with a small idea for a photo which we then work out together. During the photo shoot we alternate who is behind the camera spontaneously and we always do the editing together.

What do Rut&Tam consider their biggest achievement so far?
This debut exhibition is definitely our biggest achievement, it’s a true compliment for us to have been asked to exhibit our work at such an inspiring location. We’ve been photographing together for exactly three years now and we believe the fact that we manage to work together as photographers and have a private relationship at the same time is quite exceptional.

How does the future look for Rut & Tam?
We hope to stay as creative as we are and at the same time improve our technical skills in photography. Hopefully the future will offer us more photographic opportunities and of course maybe in the future our own exhibition at FOAM!

Regeneration opens Saturday the 12th of November and can be viewed for the next two months. For the grand opening, music will be provided by Some Chemistry and No Reset. My advice? pop by, have a peek and regenerate yourself!