The exhibition Cor Was Here throws light on the complete oeuvre of the photographer, illustrious AKI teacher and honorary citizen of Amsterdam, Cor Jaring (1936–2013), with an emphasis on hitherto unknown material. Jaring was an adventurous and extrovert character who played a conspicuous role in the Amsterdam harbour strikes and Provo demonstrations of the 1960s.
Less well known is the fact that Jaring regularly travelled all over the world making photo reportages, documenting his experiences with a characteristically narrative talent. Huis Marseille is delighted to be able to show newly discovered work on his adventures in Tokyo, a hitherto secret archive of nudes, and more. The selection was curated by admirer and fellow photographer Sander Troelstra together with Huis Marseille. The assistant curator of Huis Marseille, Anna Kruyswijk (AK), talked with Troelstra about his Cor Jaring project and this, the resulting exhibition.
AK: Let’s start at the very beginning: why Cor? Sander Troelstra: Good question! Well it happened on its own, really. It was Koos Breukel who put me in touch with him; for Koos’ photo project ‘PS Camera’ I was supposed to borrow a camera from Cor and go off taking photos with it. But I found Cor’s whole personality much more fascinating than his camera. He was an interesting character. I mean, here was this striking little old man, about 75 at the time, with dirty jokes and tall stories. And I started getting more and more curious about whether any of it was true.
I felt a strong need to become part of his work and his life. This wasn’t a conscious need; now, in retrospect, I can see that maybe it was connected to something I never had. I had no granddad and my father died early. I’m not saying that Cor became my granddad, but I can see that he fulfilled a role that I may have felt was missing. Through him I learned about about a time I hadn’t known, the 1960s; and I liked his rough character. He is his work, for me. Read more at HuisMarseille
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COR WAS HERE / The adventurous oeuvre of an Amsterdam photographer, 1936–2013
March 14, 2015 / June 28, 2015
Huis Marseille
Keizersgracht 401, 1016 EK Amsterdam
Opening hours: Tuesday–Sunday, 11–18 hr
