I am a socially engaged documentary photographer with an extended teaching practice, working on topics that stem from my own curiosity and whose aim is to address issues in society that I want to be changed. My work might be about others, but it is also a way for me to understand my own position in society; a way for me to try to evolve as a human being.
Contact
contact@andersbirger.com
Instagram: andersbirger
UK +44 (0)7511269638 / DK +45 60542964
Selected Exhibitions
(Solo shows)
2024 EU and U, Democracy Garage, Copenhagen (DK)
2023 BEAF, Boscombe Independent Arts Festival, Bournemouth (UK)
2022 PECKHAM 24, Peckham, (UK)
2015 Retrospective, Red Gallery, London (UK)
(Group shows)
2021 PORTRAIT NOW, National Museum, Frederiksborg Castle, Hillerød (DK)
2018 Brighton Photo Biennale, Brighton (UK)
2014 Cardiff Photo Fringe, Cardiff (UK)
2013 A Temperamental View, The Invisible Line Gallery, London (UK)
2012 FRESHFACED+WILDEYED – The Photographers Gallery, London (UK)
Published In (Selection)
Foam Magazine (NL)
British Journal of Photography (UK)
Photoworks (UK)
Libération (FR)
Politiken (DK)
Metropolis M (NL)
The Guardian (UK)
Portrait Now (DK)
Stern Magazine (DE)
Sydsvenska Dagbladet (SE)
Le Nouvel Observateur (FR)
Information (DK)
Wall Street Journal (US)
Die Presse (AT)
Amnesty International (UK/DK)
Teaching Experience
2013 – Current, Associated Lecturer on the MA & BA Photojournalism & Documentary Photography Practice, London College of Communication, London, UK.
2023 – Current, Staff Lecturer in Photography, Krogerup Højskole, Denmark
Workshops and Artist Talks
(Selection)
The Photographers Gallery, London
Leica Akademie UK, London
Louisiana Museum, Humlebæk
Bin Matar Cultural Centre, Bahrain
BEAF Festival, Bournemouth
Democracy Garage, Copenhagen
Brighton Photo Fringe, Brighton
Education
2021 MA Photography & Society, Royal Academy of the Arts, The Hague (NL)
2011 MA Photojournalism & Documentary Photography, London College of Communication (UK)
2008 BA Photojournalism, Danish School of Journalism (DK)
Artistic Statement
I grew up working class. My father was building ships at the local wharf and a unionist, my mother was a social worker and cared for us. When I was five, my brother died and my family disintegrated. I spent much of my childhood looking at the people surrounding me, watching them live through different stages of grief. When I got access to my first camera at the age of six, it became my way of trying to understand moments of human interaction and emotion. A way to organise them and categorise them.
Now, my work might be about others, but it is still a way for me to understand my own position in society; still a way for me to try to evolve as a human being. I aim to be honest in my work, as I aim to be honest with myself. My goal is constant development and my fear is personal stagnation.
I work with photography and video. I also like to write and build things for my projects. My aim is to tell stories that make you wonder. These stories exist in the realm of magic realism, sitting between fact and fiction. I want my audience to be free to explore the world I create and draw their own conclusions.
By focusing on themes of power, control, courage and beauty, I hope to make people question the stories we tell ourselves, and the social structures that bind us. In this way, I want to challenge the inequalities in society.
