Patrick Jan Van Hove (Belgium)

Canadian-born, but now based in Brussels, I have been very interested in large format photography for many years. A few years ago, as I was getting interested in Ultra-Large format photography, I started looking for ressources and information on the subject, and didn’t find any centralized data. That’s where the idea behind Mamut Photo was born. I started gathering information and contacting ULF photographers from around the globe, as well as alternative process artists, since both were usually closely related, in order to create a ressource that will be of interest not only to newcomers to the world of ULF, but also a meeting point for experienced practitioners. As a photographer I work with a number of cameras, from a 35mm-SLR all the way up to a century-old 11×14 camera . I particularly love the results that can be obtained using Polaroid films. In the present photoblog I present my work as a photographer. The bulk of my photographic work, as you might have already seen, is about the female form. I am mainly interested in the body as a reality, as an integral part of a person. I try to see my nudes as I would portraits, trying to convey the personality of the model through the image. As a rule, I try to limit my alterations of the images in post-production, as I find that the reality, beauty, and sensuality of the skin is better rendered when imperfections are present. I also sometimes stray away from my beaten path, and explore the universe of fetish, which is so visually fascinating. It is interesting to me since it usually portrays women are pure sexual objects, and I try to apply my same “humanitarian” to those subjects… I haven’t succeded yet, but I haven’t yet given up…