THE HAGUE.- Museum Panorama Mesdag presents a selection of over seventy photos of contemporary beach life from a non-commonplace perspective, in the exhibition CANDID. The photos were commissioned by the museum from four up-and-coming photographers from The Hague that have started a collective on this occasion: Giedo van der Zwan (1967), Mirjam Rosa (1982), Merel Schoneveld (1983) and Sandra Uittenbogaart (1975). Together they created a portrait of contemporary beach life, that became nostalgic sooner than expected. The exhibition CANDID is on show until 28 February 2021 in The Hague.

The CANDID collective
The diversity of the seaside resort is the common denominator of the collective. As a result, the photographers challenge and inspire each other. Ordinary people are captured in everyday situations against the backdrop of the familiar seaside resort, but they appear to be anything but ordinary. The artists do not stage-manage nor pass judgement; their photos are self-explanatory, honest, and authentic. In other words: they are CANDID.




Personal signature
The photographers display a strong, personal signature: Giedo van der Zwan focusses his sharp lens on unsuspecting day trippers, which results in intriguing and sometimes absurd images; Mirjam Rosa really gets onto people’s skin, which creates raw, intimate portraits; Sandra Uittenbogaart manages to capture chaos at the beach in harmonious, still images; and Merel Schoneveld translates her experience of the seaside resort in powerful black-and-white compositions that feel both estranging and poetic.

Experimental video
Each time, visitors view the seaside resort from a very different perspective by means of seventy photos in various sizes. Merel Schoneveld does not only exhibit her photos, but also an experimental video in which she engages visitors in her surreal impression of Scheveningen.

A glimpse behind the scenes
Scheveningen is brought to life in the Hague School gallery by the life-sized photos of Sandra Uittenbogaart and Giedo van der Zwan. Visitors can also glimpse behind the scenes: the artists’ collective started to photograph each other during the work process, because the quest for the perfect photograph results in some exceptional images too. Moreover, a film by cineast and street photographer Bas Hordijk provides his impression of the mode of operation of the four photographers.

Visitors are required to book a ticket online. Online tickets are available on the website.