Her self-presentations are sometimes curious, but often also ironic or touching.
The Finnish photo artist Elina Brotherus, studied photography and chemistry, likes playing with identities, she often works with reflections and mirror images, as in the exhibition "Elina Brotherus - In reference to a sunny place", which can be seen in the Fotografie Forum Frankfurt and provides an overview of her work over the past 25 years.
Pictures by Brotherus were already on view in the Fotografie Forum in 2014, at that time in a collective exhibition of contemporary Finnish photography.
Since then, people have been thinking about a separate exhibition of her extensive work, says Celina Lunsford, artistic director of the Fotografie Forum and curator of the exhibition.
Nicole Nadine Seliger
Editor in the Rhein-Main-Zeitung
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The artist, who was born in Helsinki, repeatedly deals with her "double identity" as photographer and model in one person as well as with the connection between model, artist and viewer, for example in the nude portraits of the series "Artists at Work" (2009), which together was created with Russian art students.
Brotherus photographs the scene while she poses for the two painters for their nude portrait.
She also wanted to find out what happens to the two students when they are observed at work and their model looks back.
“I no longer recognize myself in the photos”
Although self-portraits make up a large part of her work, Brotherus resists being seen solely as an autobiographical artist.
Her first works in particular are definitely influenced by events in her life.
In "The girl spoke of love" (1997 to 1999) she processed her failed marriage as a young artist, her "Wedding Portraits" (1997) can also be seen in the Fotografie Forum.
"I no longer recognize myself in the photos," she says of the oldest photos in the exhibition.
"Revenue" (1999) from the series "Suites françaises" shows her shortly after her arrival in France, where Brotherus went after the "short and unhappy" marriage, when nothing kept her in Finland anymore.
The Announcement series (2009 to 2013) addresses the artist's involuntary childlessness.
Many of her series are inspired by art movements or personalities from art history.
The motif "Der Wanderer" (2004) from the series "The New Painting" is reminiscent of depictions by the early romantic painter Caspar David Friedrich.
The series "Sebaldiana - Memento Mori" is dedicated to the German writer WG Sebald, who came to Corsica at the end of the 20th century to do research.
He died in 2001 before he could finish his book.
"I love Sebald, he's one of my favorite artists of all time," says Brotherus, who read Fragments of Sebald before her first visit to the island and then used them like a travel guide for her work.
She visited places that Sebald describes in his text - the beach, the coast, a hotel - and went in search of places that were beautiful enough
to bury the deceased loved ones there.
A bygone Corsican tradition described by Sebald and brought back memories to Brotherus.
Her father died when she was still a child, her mother lived her dream as a young widow and went to art school before she also died a few years later.
"I became a photographer because of my father and an artist because of my mother," says Brotherus about the influence of her parents.
She therefore sees her pictures in Corsica as a tribute to her mother.
Because my mother is an artist,” says Brotherus about the influence of her parents.
She therefore sees her pictures in Corsica as a tribute to her mother.
Because my mother is an artist,” says Brotherus about the influence of her parents.
She therefore sees her pictures in Corsica as a tribute to her mother.
A large part of her current work, such as the series "One Minute Sculptures after Erwin Wurm" (since 2017), "The Baldessari Assignments" (since 2016) and "Meaningless Work" (since 2016), deals with Fluxus, the art movement for whom the idea is more important than the product itself - or as Brotherus says: "Anyone can become an artist and take up an idea, but you indicate whose idea it was." For her photos, she uses the instructions and ideas of numerous Artists returned, including Tuomas Timonen and George Brecht alongside Wurm and Baldessari.
She works with a self-timer for her productions – her photos could hardly be created any other way, if the photographer acts as her own model, hanging on branches for her shots (“In the Sky Unlike a Bird”,
Current, contemporary influences are also addressed in Brotherus' works.
When the Russian military began war against Ukraine on February 24, she remembered a building in Paimio, Finland, a former sanatorium built by architect Alvar Aalto.
The stairs inside are yellow, the railing is blue.
She immediately went there with her camera.
"I knew the building and the colors there now have a new meaning," says Brotherus.
It was in this setting that “Stand With Ukraine” was taken, a photo that will be sold in an unlimited edition.
A large portion of the proceeds are donated to charitable organizations for humanitarian purposes.
20,000 euros have already been raised, she says.
Elina Brotherus – In reference to a sunny place: Fotografie Forum Frankfurt, Braubachstraße 30-32, until September 18, Gallery Talk with Elina Brotherus on September 10 from 3 p.m