Martin Roemers (born August 21, 1962 in Oldehove, Netherlands) is a Dutch photographer and artist. Roemers studied at the AKI Academy of Visual Arts in Enschede, the Netherlands. He graduated in 1991.
His first long-term project was Trabant. The Final Days of Production (1990–1992). Roemers, still being a student, photographed the production process of the Trabant car and made portraits of the Trabant workers. The book and exhibition of this project followed years later in 2007.[1]
Warfare project
Roemers opted for the black-and-white portrait in his photo projects on the long-term effects of warfare. This resulted in three books and exhibitions:
Kabul (2002): Portraits of ISAF soldiers in Kabul, Afghanistan photographed with an antique Afghan box camera.[2]
The Never-Ending War (2004–2005): World War Two veterans from Russia, Germany, USA, UK, Poland, Belgium and the Netherlands. The series received a World Press Photo award in 2006.[3]
The Eyes of War (2007–2012): Blind victims of World War Two. For this project, he made portraits of dozens of people who had lost their eyesight as children, young adults or soldiers in the violence of WW2.[4][5][6][7]
Relics of the Cold War
In his book Relics of the Cold War (1998–2009) Roemers traced Cold War relics in former Eastern and Western Europe and then photographed them in situ. This generated a collection of images of tunnels, rusting tanks and abandoned nuclear missile launch pads.[8][9][10][11]
Metropolis
In Metropolis (2007–2015) Roemers photographed 22 megacities worldwide . Roemers presents these (analog) cityscapes from an elevated perspective and uses a long exposure time in which traffic and people merge into a blurred rush of energy.
Metropolis features Beijing, Buenos Aires, Cairo, Dhaka, Guangzhou, Istanbul, Jakarta, Karachi, Kolkata, Lagos, London, Los Angeles, Manila, Mexico City, Moscow, Mumbai, New York, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Shanghai and Tokyo.[12][13][14][15]
Exhibits and recognition
Roemers’ work has been exhibited throughout Europe, America, Asia and Australia. It is represented in Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum[16](60 prints) and The Museum of Fine Arts in Houston.
Roemers received two World Press Photo Awards, including a first prize for Metropolis, along with a number of other prizes.
Books (Monographs)
Martin Roemers, De laatste lichting – The Last Batch, Het Apollohuis (Eindhoven, 1996). Introductions by Rolf Sachsse, Herman Amersfoort, ISBN9789071638329
Martin Roemers, Tussen vijandige Buren, Mets & Schilt Publishers (Amsterdam, 2000) Introduction by Henri Beunders, ISBN90-5330-289-1
Martin Roemers, Kabul, Legermuseum (Delft, 2003), Introduction by Frits Baarda, ISBN90-6116-017-0
Martin Roemers, The Never-Ending War – De eindeloze oorlog, QV Publishers (Nijmegen, 2005). Introduction by H.J.A. Hofland, Interviews by Martin Roemers, ISBN90-80974-013
Martin Roemers, Trabant; The Final Days of Production – Trabant; Die letzten Tage der Produktion, Wasmuth Verlag (Berlin, 2007), Introductions by Winnfried Sonntag, Achim Dresler, Kerstin Schwenn, ISBN978-3-8030-3324-6
Martin Roemers, Relics of the Cold War, Hatje Cantz (Ostfildern, 2009), Introductions by Nadine Barth, H.J.A. Hofland, Martin Roemers, ISBN978-3-7757-2534-7
Martin Roemers, The Eyes of War, Hatje Cantz (Ostfildern, 2012), Introductions by Cees Nooteboom, Martin Roemers, Interviews by Martin Roemers, ISBN978-3-7757-3400-4
Martin Roemers, Metropolis, Hatje Cantz (Ostfildern, 2015) Introductions by Ricky Burdett, Azu Nwagbogu, Els Barents, ISBN978-3-7757-4006-7
↑ Martin Roemers, Kabul, Legermuseum (Delft, 2003), Introduction by Frits Baarda, ISBN90-6116-017-0
↑ Martin Roemers, The Never-Ending War – De eindeloze oorlog, QV Publishers (Nijmegen, 2005). Introduction by H.J.A. Hofland, Interviews by Martin Roemers, ISBN90-80974-013
↑ Martin Roemers, The Eyes of War, Hatje Cantz (Ostfildern, 2012), Introductions by Cees Nooteboom, Martin Roemers, Interviews by Martin Roemers, ISBN978-3-7757-3400-4
↑ Martin Roemers, Relics of the Cold War, Hatje Cantz (Ostfildern, 2009), Introductions by Nadine Barth, H.J.A. Hofland, Martin Roemers, ISBN978-3-7757-2534-7
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