My project started in Cairo (Egypt) where I was fascinated by the enormous amount of cars in the city.
In contrast with the Netherlands, cars, often old and full of scratches, are repaired outside the garages in the street. Significant is that all car-workshops are very small and very specialised. The upholstery of car seats is situated next to the car mechanic and the car radio specialist. This way the car can stay outside and the mechanics move from one car to the other, until the whole car is fixed. The metamorphosis of the damaged car into one as good as new is like a healing process, an almost physical sensation. Inside in the garages, the spaces look like installations where the repaired product is hung on the wall like it has special powers. In my photography the adoration of the shining car material is the main subject.
Back in Rotterdam I continued the project. The car stands for autonomy: your own domain, a capsule, and your own style, in a time where the car seems to be in an identity crisis, due to the fastly changing climate. I made images with a special interest for the materials oil, metal, lac and leather, showing a raw improvised world posing the shine of an ancient desire to luxury and decadence.
