19 january 2023, Manuela Klerkx
Tahné Kleijn: Photographer of silent witnesses
The first thing that struck me when I leafed through Tahné Kleijn's book Stilte heeft het laatste woord was how she creates an ambiance that reveals more than words using the chiaroscuro technique. The book is a photo report of a year and a half of the pandemic in Brabant, commissioned by the municipality of Helmond and province of North Brabant. It gives a shocking glimpse into what happens in the lives of ordinary people in an ordinary city like Helmond and the surrounding area when a crisis like the '20/'21 pandemic breaks out. In this unique period document, Tahné exposes not only the ugly reality, but also the human side that arises in times of crisis. When she began working on this book, which was originally supposed to be about the suffering of others, Tahné and her family were told that her mother was terminally ill. So, the project took on a much more personal note and Stilte heeft het laatste word became as much a book about the pandemic – and the question of what that does to the sick person, as well as to the medical staff and next of kin – as about the sick bed and death of Tahné’s mother resulting from COPD, a lung tumour and extreme underweight. Tahné comments, "Covid did not kill my mum, but because of the pandemic, her life stopped a year before her death."
Have you always wanted to be a photographer?
AInitially, I was interested in documentary photography, which was also the starting point for my graduation project at St Joost in Breda. I wanted it to be about my own family, which is known as a ‘troubled family’. But after a while, I could no longer reconcile myself with that idea because I felt that the emphasis was too much on the negative, such as debts, addiction and mental problems, and not enough on things like the social aspects, loyalty and togetherness that are also very much part of our family. That is why I initially decided against graduating. But as luck would have it, during that same time, I came across a book with work by Jan Steen, the painter we all know from the saying ‘A Jan Steen household’, referring to a chaotic, disorganised home. He may not be as technically skilled as Frans Hals or Rembrandt van Rijn, but no one captures family dynamics quite like he does.
Tahné Kleijn, Soo d'Oude Songen, Soo Pypen de Jonge, 2015, Studio Seine
Why do the old masters fascinate you so much?
I’ve always been interested in the 17th and 18th century masters like Hals and Vermeer because of their compositions and use of colour, which I’ve to master in my own photography. I eventually discovered that lighting was a way to create a kind of theatrical and safe layer between what is actually taking place and how it is experienced, a kind of 'filter' between what you photograph and what you want to tell. In documentary photography, you have to capture exactly what is happening, while in my own photography, I can add nuances in lighting and composition that I consider important for the story I want to tell. For example, I wanted to capture our family not only as a problem family, but also as a very close and warm family, probably closer than most ‘normal’ families. Having financial difficulties does not necessarily mean a troubled family life, that you do not receive love or attention. The educational level of the parents does not have to affect the child. By the way, did you know that one in five families is considered a problem family?
Every day, I went to school with freshly baked bread,
came home to a bowl of fresh soup at noon and could tell my parents everything. Friends would join us for dinner, spend the night and even go on holiday with us. And yet we were a ‘problem family’.
This became painfully clear to me in secondary school. Not because things were unpleasant at home, but because classmates were not allowed to hang out with me. I was bothered by the stigma, but not the reason for it.
Yes, our family was a bit chaotic and yes, we had our issues,
but my family was close, warm and loving.
Tahné Kleijn, Het Gebed voor de Maaltijd, 2015, Studio Seine
Did you experience the fact that you come from a so-called ‘problem family’ as stigmatising?
Because of the sense of togetherness, I never had any qualms about it. We’re always there for each other, no questions asked. But from a social point of view, it was indeed a stigma. For example, during my last year of primary school, I achieved the highest possible score on the national Cito test, but was still advised to attend a lower level of secondary education because of my ‘problematic home situation’. I had to fight to get into higher secondary education. After graduating, I went to journalism school. I would have liked to go to university, but the urge to tell stories was stronger. I think it came from a need to prove to society the positive sides of a ‘problem family’.
Do you consider yourself a photographer or visual artist?
Whether people look at my pictures for the image or for the story is the same to me. People have to decide for themselves what they see in my work. As a child, I wanted to be a writer. I wanted to tell stories. Ultimately, I found that journalism as a medium was not creative enough for that. So, I chose photography. The technical part is less than five percent of my research. I'm much more concerned with staging and controlling the lighting. I often have the picture taken by someone else because I‘m usually in it.
Tahné Kleijn, Vlees en Bloed, 2020, Studio Seine
What’s your approach as a photographer?
I supervise the setting and casting. I then determine the starting point and after that, I let go of control as much as possible. The unexpected that arises in the process can make the picture very interesting. For my graduation project, I wanted to photograph my nephew together with my father and mother. I was allowed to take 20 pictures of him with my parents, but he thought it was me and not him who should be in the picture with my parents – and he was right. I couldn't have imagined that beforehand. For the shots of a Jan Steen household, I visit the family twice: the first time for the morning ritual and the second time for dinner. I then hope they are themselves as much as possible and pay attention to how they interact, their family dynamics. No one paid more attention to this than Jan Steen. He was perhaps not as good as some of his contemporaries technically, but no one captured family dynamics as aptly as he did.
Tahné Kleijn, Langs Moeders Graf, 2020, Studio Seine
How did he do that?
He made viewing or sight lines that are very recognisable, just like his paintings. Usually, one person is dressed in lighter clothing than the others and that person is also the starting point of the painting. So, if you follow the narratives, you see that no one is skipped and the last person is always looking at you.
What are you currently working on?
I'm working on a project about my grandparents, who got to know each other through letters. During the first ten years of their relationship, they saw each other for a total of no more than five months because my grandfather was at sea and my grandmother spent a long time in a Japanese concentration camp. Yet she gave birth to five children during that time period. I am working on a new project based on their correspondence and a number of my grandmother's diaries from the time she was in the camp. Perhaps I’ll combine this with portraits of relatives or other people involved who can corroborate or retell the story. I struggle with the setting between fact and fiction. There are also dark sides to the family history, but I can't omit them. But some of them have been ‘removed’ by my grandmother, so they are off limits.
Inspired by the paintings of Jan Steen, I photographed my own ‘Jan Steen household’. Staged, starring my own family members and based on true events. Anyone who reads the pictures can read my family story, full of financial problems, addictions and sometimes domestic violence, but above, pride, loyalty and fun.
In that sense, my family is representative of all other ‘problem families’ in the Netherlands, which is no small number at 20% of all families.
It shows that, contrary to what is suggested, ‘problem families’ do not necessarily have to be a problem.
Tahné Kleijn, Over Appels die van Bomen Vallen, 2020, Studio Seine
How did you obtain those letters?
I got them from my uncle. I was allowed to work with them under certain conditions. I now have scanned copies of all the letters at home.
Where does the urge to tell this kind of story come from?
Like I said, I think from a need to break the stigma of a ‘problem family’ by showing the positive sides and on the other hand, to break taboos and inspire people. For example, I was touched when a teenager who had seen the pictures in the series 'Soo d'Oude Singen' came to me crying, saying that my series had given her the courage to speak out about the kind of family she comes from.
Is there any audience in particular you hope to reach with your work?
Together with my gallery, we are exploring possibilities to show my work in the right places and offer it to interested buyers. I also think it’s just as important that my work is seen by people who come from the same environment as me, or from a comparable problematic situation, who can recognise themselves and find recognition in my work. Identification and recognition are the most important elements for me. In addition to my work as a photographer, I am also involved in the Helmond Photo Festival as artistic director. The festival offers free admission in order to keep the threshold for people who normally do not go to a gallery or museum as low as possible. We also give photography lessons, for example to Ukrainian refugees, so that people learn how to record their own story. We give them the tools, but it is up to them to visualise their situation – in their own way since they are the creators.
The solo exhibition 'Zoals het Klokje Tikt' by Tahné Kleijn can be seen until 12 February 2023 at Studio Seine, Mathenesserdijk 323 A in Rotterdam.
