Another order of things, so much is clear!
Kings, princesses, popstars, pin-ups, cruel tyrants, transvestites, transsexuals, vagebonds and rogues. Bizarre characters in an unreal setting.
Barbara van Ittersum carries us off to a world in which the outcast holds sway. She makes use of ‘staged photo portraiture’ to grant us a glimpse into the absurd world of theatre and show. She demonstrates the ability to transform her models, men and women from everyday environments, into extravagant and glamorous personalities.
Barbara van Ittersum studied painting, graphic and audiovisual design before she decided to specialize in photography at the University for the Arts in Utrecht (HKU). She has been working as a photographer since then and has had several exhibitions as well as doing acclaimed work for magazines and outdoor advertisments.
In Barbara’s search for the underlying truth she surpasses the boundaries of conventionality and good taste of which images of vanity and lust, cruelty and pride, fear and loneliness are the result; reflecting her passionate and outgoing personality. Her pictures function as a mirror for others as well and because of her impulsive view in life associations concerning happenings from daily life are put into a different perspective.
Provocation and confrontation are keywords in her state of being.