Christoffer Relander

“We doubt the Navy ever imagined what affect they’d have on Relander’s future career, nor the incredible images he would produce - but we’re certainly grateful! ”

“Fascination and imagination are two driving forces for the artist. A reminisce of snow globes, photographer Christoffer Relander creates his own realities and worlds at a hand’s size into his own personal conservatory of environments, fulfilling his childhood dream to keep the scenery of his youth and hometown in southern Finland into reachable and tangent memories.”

“Taking his longing for his childhood home and literally placing it in a jar, Christoffer Relander‘s Jarred & Displaced series uses double exposure photography to bottle up the landscape of southern Finland. Always fascinated by the idea of collecting things, Relander had been using multiple exposures in his photography for about 5 years when the idea for the project came to him in 2014. Nostalgia for his homeland—spurred by the impending birth of his daughter—was his initial motivation.”

“Sub-titled We Are Nature, this second time around takes Christoffer’s original concept and brings it to the next, more intimate, level.”

“It is remarkable how fresh and striking Christoffer Relander’s multiple exposure photographs are. Considering the volume of photographs and media we are inundated with lately, it takes something truly original to stand out. Photographers have experimented with multiple exposures before, but without Relander’s masterful composition and expert control over a technique that is too easily misused. Bodies become ethereal vessels holding trees and forests. The effect is magical.”

“Finnish fine art photographer Christoffer Relander is known for his in-camera multiple exposure images, a mix of portraits and nature combined. His series We Are Nature captures the essence of his double exposure technique, with its impeccable mixture of natural winder landscapes and portraits.”

“I am such a sucker for multiple exposure photography, it simply never, ever gets old for me, especially when composed as wonderfully as these recent shots by self-taught photographer Christoffer Relander.”

“The result is a haunting yet beautiful amalgamation of mankind and nature, conflicting with the negative and confrontational relationship more commonly portrayed between the two.”

“I like your multiple exposure work, Christopher Relander. Remember the first time you learned how to do this, when film was king, and how magical the discovery was? And then, remember sandwiching your negatives together to create something unique for the world? Sometimes it worked, other times it was a hot mess, but all the time, it was fun and interesting. Now, with digital cameras, the game and fun has changed — not for the worse; it’s just different. Relander’s work here is all done in camera. Shocking, right? Awesome, right?”

“Ansel Adams once said “you don’t take a photograph, you make it.” I have always thought that what he meant by this quote was the process involved in reaching the final image. It has never been about clicking a picture simply, but it involves the creativity the photographer pours into his image. And creativity and sensibility also are what transpire in the beautiful conceptual project of Finnish photograper Christoffer Relander, titled Jarred & Displaced.”

“Multiple exposure photography is challenging to perfect, but beautifully eerie when done well.”

“Stemming from a past of ambitious collecting, photographer Christoffer Relander utilizes mason jars as vessels to capture the environments that surrounded him during his childhood in Finland. The project, Jarred & Displaced, utilizes double exposures shot on medium format film to combine pristine images of jars with black and white landscapes, collecting scenes shot within forests, neighborhoods, and on top of steep ridges.”

“So said with utmost respect, Relander’s art has a very broad audience indeed. The reason for this is undoubtedly that his work resonates with us at an emotional level, rather than merely speaking to an insular group of art critics who share a long history of shared references necessary to decipher much contemporary art.”

“Incredibly, Christoffer has created all of these images in-camera with no editing manipulation.”

“Inspired by memories of a childhood collecting ladybugs, grass, and ants, Finnish photographer Christoffer Relander has a playful new series of analog double exposures that appear to capture the Scandanavian wilderness inside mason jars. Titled Jarred and Displaced, Relander’s photos encase the landscape of his homeland in glass, making them look like expertly-crafted terrariums. ”

“...when Relander managed to contain the landscape exclusively to the blackened glass of the jar, the results are mesmerizing. See for yourself.”