Hans Hammarskiöld

Hans Hammarskiöld (1925–2012) was born exactly a century ago. As one of Sweden’s most prominent photographers, his career spanned six decades, with exceptional international success. Just in time for the centennial celebration of his birth, the Hans Hammarskiöld – A Life of Highlights exhibition is opening at Fotografiska Stockholm.

“All of Hans’s work is characterized by the desire to experiment and to find new approaches. That he was a person of humor and warmth, who gained the trust of those he portrayed, shines through in everything he did,” says Niclas Östlind, professor of photography and curator of the exhibition together with the art historian Joakim Geiger.

Hans Hammarskiöld was born in Stockholm on May 17, 1925. Twenty-four years later, what would become his lifelong career as a photographer began.He quickly started moving effortlessly between genres, including becoming a successful international fashion photographer, and he was often commissioned to take portraits of famous artists, writers, photographers, and royalty. Above all, Hans Hammarskiöld had an artistic eye and intense interest in the interplay of light, space, and the subject and how this creates an interesting composition. Hans Hammarskiöld - A Life of Highlights is a new exhibition showing everything from 1950s London to abstract still lifes, fashion photographs, and several of his now iconic portraits.

"strong sense of form and rhythm"

“In addition to the strong personal presence that characterizes Hans Hammarskiöld’s photographs, there is also a strong sense of form and rhythm, something he shares with many constructivist painters of his own generation,” says Joakim Geiger, one of the curators of the exhibition.

The photographs from 1950s London show Hans Hammarskiöld’s strong appreciation for detail and his ability to sense and convey the character of places – and, not least, of the Londoners he portrays. The fashion photographs, which date from the 1950s and 1960s, are marked by elegance and inventiveness, with examples from the covers of British Vogue, where Hammarskiöld worked from 1954 to 1956.

Most of the exhibition photographs are portraits from across five decades, often of the great artists of the time – when Hans Hammarskiöld was closely involved with the avant-garde art scene of the 1960s. Several of his photographic experiments are also on display, where the images are often more abstract than representational. A separate section highlights his documentation of the legendary exhibition She – A Cathedral, shown at Moderna Museet in Stockholm in 1966.

shaped Swedish photography for decades to come

Together with Georg Oddner, Rune Hassner, Lennart Olsson, and others, Hans Hammarskiöld founded the group Ten Photographers in 1958. This group shaped Swedish photography for decades to come. By the time of Hammarskiöld’s death in 2012, he was the last living member of the group.

“Their work really marked a new era for photography and the reportage-like and experimental images exuded a different boldness and strength from those of the previous generation,” says Lisa Hydén, Director of Exhibitions at Fotografiska.

Hans Hammarskiöld – A Life of Highlights is curated by Niclas Östlind, professor of photography, and Joakim Geiger, art historian, in collaboration with Fotografiska and Hans Hammarskiöld Heritage.