«Between The Mountains» revolves around isolation and alienation, with the alpine scenery of Austria as a backdrop.
The location is not a coincidence. In the winter, low elevation of the sun leaves many Austrian valleys in darkness, and the contrast between the snow white alpine peaks and the villages below is striking.
Traveling in Austria is like going back in time. Many Austrians are very religious, and the connection between religion and nature is close. Chapels, crosses and holy places pop up along less busy roads, hiking trails, and small villages. I find Austrian approach to religion pantheistic, and their culture strongly connected to romantic nationalism, with Caspar David Friedrich’s paintings in mind.
In this enviroment you can see two characters: a man wearing a bald head mask and a creature dressed in a gillie suit. These two inhabit both interior and exterior scenery, always alone and always present. The project examines the relationship between these two states of mind: presence and isolation.The series combines different photograpic genres: staged, landscape and documentary in its exploration of the human existence in the 21st century.
About Kristoffer Eliassen
Kristoffer Eliassen is from Oslo, Norway. He holds an MBA in photography from Bergen National Academy of the Arts (1999). He uses self staged photography to explore the male identity, and how man relates to technology, culture and nature. His previous project, “Selfphone”, won 3rd prize at the 2016 Sony World Photography Awards (Staged category). The project “Between The Mountains” is partly funded by Arts Council Norway. [Official Website]
