Nadav Kander Large Format Photography
Nadav Kander was born in 1961 in Israel, but grew up in South Africa. He started his career at 13 shooting a Pentax camera. Because of his love for photography, he even worked in the darkroom printing aerial photographs when drafted into military service in South Africa. Upon release, he knew photography would be his life mission, and moved to London in 1986, where he still resides. Nadav Kander large format photography soon became the mantra he is still known for. Whether doing portraits or landscapes, it was his chosen weapon of choice. And has continued to be so to this day.
His first success was becoming known for his China Yangtze River series, and was awarded the Prix Pictet Prize. This was a series that took about 3 years to complete as he traveled the course of this very long river, to it’s source in Tibet, where it is barely ankle deep. His dedication to this project paid off handsomely on his return.
180 Degrees
Becoming recognized as a landscape artist to be contended with, it was a surprise that his next large series dealt with a series of nudes in the studio. Kind of a 180 degree turn. But, he didn’t think so. Covered in white marble dust and photographed in the studio, it was his take on the frailty of humanity, while presenting them as classical statues.
His next important work returned to landscape. The remains of the radioactive ruins of unknown cities on the border between Kazakhstan and Russia. Their beauty was found in their stark post-nuclear decay.
In 2009 the New York Times commissioned him to produce political portraits, including Barack Obama, Joe Biden, an many of their staff. He had somehow become a portraitist, and was again called upon to participate in the 2012 Olympics.
Consummate Artist
Whether it’s portraiture, architecture, (he was chosen to be a part of “Constructing Worlds: Photography and Architecture in the Modern Age”, an exhibit in London), or landscape, once Nadav Kander partakes of a project, it’s 100%.
But, in lieu of diametrically opposed photographic genres, the question becomes,…can they co-exist peacefully? Nadav Kander has proven it to be so. Find 8×10 Camera
Nadav Kander Website