Chen Man Exhibition at Fotografiska

I hope that everyone had a nice New Year's celebration! It is 2018 now and time to get back to some more normal, non-holiday themed blogging. Fortunately, I had some family visiting this past weekend for the holidays so I took them to Fotografiska (the Swedish Museum of Photography) to see the new exhibition "Fearless & Fabulous" by Chen Man (runs until March 4th).

If you have been following this blog then you know that Fotografiska is one of my favorite museums in Stockholm to visit... mainly because they constantly have new and exciting exhibitions each season and they usually offer an interesting mix of exhibitions with different styles and points of view. The space is also great and the waterfront location means that the café and restaurant on the top floor have stunning views of the harbor.

Chen Man is a Chinese photographer and graphic designer, working mainly in the world of fashion photography. She is a real pioneer of the medium in China. Her images marry photography and graphic design in a really interesting way through her use of photoshopping, adding layers to the images. I also love the way she intertwines Chinese mythology and history with her hyper-modern imagery.

The images are colorful and beautiful and visiting the exhibition is a nice way to liven up a dreary winter day in Stockholm. The exhibition shares a floor in the museum with another exhibition "Silent Land" by Åsa Sjöström (runs until Feb 4th), which shows everyday life in Moldova, one of the poorest countries in Europe. Beautiful photographs and an interesting contrast to the colorful, rich images in the Chen Man exhibition next door.

On the first floor of the museum, you have another interesting exhibition... completely different from the aforementioned two exhibitions: "Inside Out" by Nick Veasey (runs until Feb 18th). The name of the exhibit is very fitting as Nick Veasey uses X-ray photography exposing the insides of his subjects. And it isn't only people. Veasey uses large-scale X-ray cameras so we can see the inside of airplanes, a surfer heading to the beach in a VW Beetle or even a bus filled with passengers.

Fotografiska has very generous opening hours, closing at 11pm on Sundays through Wednesdays and at 1am on Thursdays through Saturdays... so it is easy to squeeze in a visit if you are in town for only a short time and have a full agenda. They also have a fantastic restaurant there in the evenings and make sure you visit their gift shop before leaving. The shop has one of the best collections of photography books I have ever come across.

To get there from the Rival Hotel, it is just a 20 minute walk along the waterfront. Otherwise the closest subway stop is Slussen (red and green lines) and from there it is just a 10 minute walk. They are doing a lot of construction at Slussen... but just follow the signs for Fotografiska! Click here if you want to see what other art exhibitions are currently ongoing in Stockholm.