Kim Høltermand – “loneliness and isolation has always been very fascinating for me”

February, 2018
Reading Time
4.5 mins
Down Arrow
Image © The Interviewee

Creative Chair Interview with Kim Høltermand

This week Creative Chair is in Copenhagen, Denmark, discussing architecture photography with Kim Høltermand.

Kim’s work has been featured on the Behance network countless times, and with good reason! The striking, often isolated tones of his pictures make them overwhelmingly appealing, even to those with little interest in architecture.

You can see more from Kim Høltermand on his website and Behance

The Wadden Sea Centre

You used to be a graphic designer. What caused you to transition to a photographer focusing on architecture and landscapes?

In 2009 I bought my first DSLR to bring on vacation and travel. I had no experience at all with handling a camera, but I started watching tutorials and learned from there. In 2008 I had moved into a house that belonged to two landscape architects – they had several subscriptions for architectural magazines which they had failed to end. I started reading them and boom.

““I am now shooting for some of the biggest clients, brands, and magazines in the world””

Age of Church

Architecture grew in my mind, and I thought ‘hey why not start shooting architecture?’ I shot a few series and put them on Behance and got positive feedback and the rest is history. I am now shooting for some of the biggest clients, brands, and magazines in the world.

Mesa

You worked as a fingerprints expert for The Danish National Police. Is that still your day job or is photography now a full-time occupation?

My work as a fingerprint expert ended in autumn 2016 and Photography is now my full-time occupation.

Swiss

Why do you revisit the themes of loneliness and isolations in many of your projects?

I guess the loneliness and isolation has always been very fascinating for me. In a world where everything and everyone is connected it is very unique to be able to be yourself.

““my work is kind of a tribute to that feeling of being alone””

Loneliness and isolation don’t have to be a bad thing – I believe some of the strongest individuals are the ones that can stand out and be themselves. Be alone. And my work is kind of a tribute to that feeling of being alone.

Babel

Futurism

Of which project are most proud?

TUVE. The series was shot in 2010 in Sweden. It had been a whole week with clear blue sky and sun and nothing to shoot for me, but on the last day in the early morning when I pulled back the curtains in the cottage, I saw dense epic fog everywhere. I quickly grabbed my camera and ran to a nearby lake called TUVE.

Tuve - Kim Høltermand

There was no wind, and everything looked as taken from a renaissance painting. Some small rocks in the edge of the lake quickly became the concept of TUVE and maybe my most famous series. And to top that – in 2015 a hotel was built in Hong Kong called Hotel TUVE, named after my series and inspired by that mood I experienced that early morning in 2010.

Tuve

And finally, if you died and got reincarnated as song what would that song be?

That is a though one, but I have to say ‘The Wind Sings’ by Goldmund. It was composed for my documentary www.outliersiceland.com shot in Iceland in 2011. It has so many of my feelings and really sums up my mind while I am out shooting and my experiences travelling the Ring Road of Iceland and my personality.

I remember hearing The Wind Sings for the first time in Chicago at the premiere of my documentary and I immediately started crying. It is such a beautiful and emotional song.

The Wind Sings"
The Wind Sings (2012)
Goldmund
Play on Apple Music
Play on Spotify
Play on YouTube
What began as a fun question to end an interview, has now become a wonderfully eclectic collaborative playlist by 161 people (and counting).
Kim Høltermand
Playlist
Our Forest