Within from Without

The starting-point for the photography of Kooi (born 1962, Leeuwarden, The Netherlands) is the Dutch landscape, which she transforms into the setting for ambiguous and inexplicable events. The apparent naturalism of her images, which always have the spontaneity of a snapshot, derives from a complex creative process involving preparatory drawings, models, and design of the lighting and location in a way comparable to film or to the great Baroque paintings. This blending of naturalism and artifice gives Ellen Kooi's photographs a troubling atmosphere that irrestibly attracts and holds the viewer's gaze.