Invisible forces in academia in new photo exhibition
A lecturer winning a prize, an expert appearing in the media or a professor giving their inaugural speech: these are faces we often see. But we rarely see the staff who work behind the scenes to make their work possible. They are now featured in the photo exhibition ‘The forces behind the faces’.
The exhibition marks the departure of Martijn Ridderbos, Vice-Chairman of the Executive Board. He was a strong advocate of recognition and rewards for non-academic staff. Because behind each researcher are support staff who make their work possible. They provide facilities that help researchers and teachers work safely and efficiently. Their support is the foundation upon which academia is built.
Martijn Ridderbos: ‘We regularly celebrate our researchers but we rarely hear about our support staff. People with a passion for their job – they’re not always visible but are essential nonetheless.’
Creative duo portraits
Four photographers captured the collaboration between support and academic staff in duo portraits. They were given the creative freedom to interpret this however they wished. Marc de Haan chose two black-and-white photos, with the pair alternating between the foreground and the background. Wilke Geurds took a conceptual approach, using paper and other objects to illustrate the collaboration. Monique Shaw invited the models to her studio for a metaphorical interpretation of the collaboration with projections, objects and Photoshop. Simone Both photographed the pairs at the place where they met.
The new photos in the exhibition are supplemented by archive materials that are almost a century old. These show university staff from the past working in the Academy Building and the hospital. Hendrik Jonker’s documentary photography can also be viewed in the University Libraries Leiden Digital Collections.
The exhibition is in the Academy Building sculpture garden and is open until Christmas.
Images: Danique ter Horst
Text: Iris Molenaar