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CORINE VERMEULEN

Born Gouda, the Netherlands, 1977

BFA, The Design Academy, Eindhoven; MFA, Cranbrook Academy of Art

Lives in Detroit, Michigan

Photographer Corine Vermeulen's meticulously constructed projects such as “Your Town Tomorrow” (Detroit

2007-2012), “The Walk-In Portrait Studio” (Detroit 2009-2014) and “Obscura Primavera”, (Medelin, Colombia,

2009-2014) reflect an artist willing to devote significant periods of time to, and seriously immerse herself in, her

subject. Her works display an exemplary combination of empathy for their subject and a very European sense of

distance. The resulting images are instantly recognizable while remaining constantly surprising in their

freshness.

After graduating from Cranbrook Academy of Art in 2004, Vermeulen relocated in 2006 to the city of Detroit –

whose condition she saw as occupying a “unique place in our current socio-economic system” - to begin the

project “Your Town Tomorrow”. The work was envisioned not as a survey of Detroit “as-is”, but rather as a

“glimpse into an alternate reality, where everyday life stands at a crossroads: between hope and despair,

vulnerability and strength, the past and the future.”. Although huge in scope, Vermeulen kept the project visually

and conceptually coherent by using a variety of devices such as: a distinct palette (green, white, black and earth

colors dominate with other colors used sparingly, and rarely in combination), a restricted subject matter (portraits

and landscape dominate), an emphasis on nature (both directly in terms of landscape, but also indirectly through

the location of portraits), an exclusion of contemporary technology and focus on agriculture, a repeated use of

flat lighting conditions, a consistent relationship to the gaze of the portrait subject (typically expressionless and

looking beyond the camera), and a recurring presence of vernacular creativity (through painted signs, tricked-out

bikes, and heavily accessorized cars).

Vermeulen is clearly sensitive to the critical position race plays in how an image will be received by an

American audience, and one feels she is consistently attempting to transcend this by forcing the viewer to focus

the humanity of her subjects; only the young, white, urban pioneers who were often the focus of the early stages

of the project might, in retrospect, be seen as stereotypes. Overall, the series can be seen as a document of an

exceptionally talented photographer in a unique time and place, but there is an alternative interpretation, that

starts from the centrality of themes such as self-sufficiency, sustainability and racial diversity, and sees the

project as an extended utopian tableaux—utopian, in the sense that, as Ernest Bloch wrote,“we need the most

powerful telescope, that of polished utopian consciousness, in order to penetrate precisely the nearest nearness.”

Vermulen's next project, “The Walk-In Portrait Studio” focused directly on the citizens of Detroit. Inspired by

Walker Evans' License Photo Studio in New York, she set up a portrait studio in a formerly foreclosed home in a

hard-knocks part of the city. Neighbors were encouraged by fliers, posters and direct invitation to visit the studio

and have their portraits taken. Over a five day period, 85 people took part, trading a story about the

neighborhood in return for a print of their portrait. Despite the informality and chance-driven nature of the walk-

in studio, Vermeulen was characteristically systematic in identifying and controlling all of the parameters that

could effect the image. Some of the resulting images (e.g. Zana) were displayed in a local art gallery, giving a

quietly dignified public face to city residents that are often treated as invisible. After this first iteration,

Vermeulen took the walk-in studio to various schools in Detroit and surrounding areas including the Catherine

Ferguson Academy, a school for young single mothers (see Breanna and her son Perrion). An interesting

counterpoint to these portraits is a parallel project in which she photographed residents of Mies van der Rohe's

Lafayette Park in their homes, a series featured in the New York Times (see Danielle and Jonathan). More

recently she has taken the concept to other community organizations and social groups in the city, and will

display the completed project at an upcoming exhibition (Nov 2014) at the Detroit Institute of the Arts, a fitting

climax to a substantial body of work.

Steve Panton, October 2014

Copyright 2014 Essay'd

Boy with lowrider Bicycle (from the series “Your Town Tomorrow”), 2009,

Image courtesy of the artist

Brewster-Douglass Housing Projects (from the series “Your Town Tomorrow”), 2010,

Image courtesy of the artist

Rick (from the series “Your Town Tomorrow”), 2008,

Image courtesy of the artist

Salvador 'Chavo' and his radical hopper, an '83 Cutlass Supreme,

(from the series “Your Town Tomorrow”), 2008,

Image courtesy of the artist

PJ and goats (from the series “Your Town Tomorrow”), 2011,

Image courtesy of the artist

Prairie and the former Koenig Coal Yard Silos (from the series “Your Town Tomorrow”), 2007,

Image courtesy of the artist

Zana, (from the “Walk-in Portrait Studio” series) 2009

Image courtesy of the artist

Breanna and her son Perrion (Catherine Ferguson Academy),

(from the “Walk-in Portrait Studio” series) 2011

Image courtesy of the artist

Danielle and Jonathan,

(from the “Thanks for the view Mr. Mies” series) 2009

Image courtesy of the artist