Interview with Bouwe Brouwer, Winner of DSPF 2025 Series category

Bouwe Brouwer (1977 - Sneek / The Netherlands): primary school teacher; studied fine arts; making books, zines and other special publications by hand since 1996. First as an illustrator, then as an internationally acclaimed writer of haiku and short stories, and since 2013 as a photographer. Starting of with simple xeroxed and stapled zines it quickly evolved in handbound hardcover books and portfolio’s in various shapes and sizes. Member of International photography collective UP. 

Winning Entry: The great escape

My practice of photographing can roughly be divided in two approaches: going out onto the streets to see whatever I will encounter and going to specific events/places to “document” that event or place. Both approaches start with my own curiosity and interest and not with a commission.  Sometimes a “body” of work ends up as a book or exhibition. The way I take photographs is the same in both situations.
This series has photo’s from both those approaches. Some come from events others are taken when wondering around on the streets or even on family holiday. What they have in common is a edgy and surreal feeling.

The future

Future plans involve publishing several books and zines with work that is already made but hasn’t been launched out into the world yet, while working on new material mostly shot in the province where I live in The Netherlands. Photograpically I am constantly looking for new images that will surprise me, content and form wise. From that, and being out into the world, I derive my joy.

Advice for street photographers starting out

Follow your own fascinations. While it is good to copy other people, to learn from what they do, the work will become more interesting and maybe even of a higher level once you start to follow your own obsessions.