‘Hiding in a closet while police search is on gives me a thrill’
BENGALURU: Daan Oude Elferink was in a castle in Europe doing what he likes best – breaking into abandoned spaces to photograph them – when he suddenly heard some noise outside and realised the police had been called in. He quickly looked around, found a closet and hid inside it, waiting for the police to pass.
While this may sound right out of a novel, Elferink’s life pretty much resembles this setting. Long-forgotten castles, decrepit hospitals, deserted industrial facilities...these are the spaces that excite Elferink, a Dutch photographer who specialises in capturing abandoned spaces. Elferink, who was in Bengaluru for Art Bengaluru 2019 at UB City, said with a laugh, “I just like the feeling of hiding in a closet while the police is searching for me.”
For his work in off-limit properties, Elferink is often spotted jumping into buildings through roofs, windows and walking through tunnels. In fact, his interest in this niche area began quite by chance, when, in 2008, he came across a fortress in Belgium and was curious to explore the interiors. With no entry in sight, he climbed up a high fence, and once inside, he fell in love with it. “At that point I knew I had found something I enjoyed and wanted to pursue,” he said, at his talk at Sublime Galleria in UB City, where some of his most dramatic works are on display. “Each image tells a magical story of life lived once upon a time. I shoot it exactly the way I find it. I sometimes explore the space to get an idea about it – a table that is set, a bed that is made, photographs in the living room, items in the attic,” he says, adding he works according to the lighting, and tends to leave doors open if any. “That way it’s open to interpretation, in terms of allowing viewers to imagine what could have happened in those spaces,” he said.
But when he does enter a building that checks all his conditions, the most important being an unused space for decades, Elferink first looks for a calendar to understand how long the space has been vacant. Elferink’s work requires much research and preparation, but he admits that despite all of it, he can’t be sure of what to expect. “This one time we were in France and we managed to enter a so-called abandoned space and set up our camera. Within minutes, an elderly lady came up to us to find out what we were doing in their living space. So you can never be sure,” says Elferink, whose works are minimally processed. “Only a person with a trained eye will be able to figure out the difference between the original and final images,” he said.
As exciting and adventurous as his work sounds, Elferink, who has even shot at a mental hospital where shoe covers were strewn around, pointed out the risks and dangers associated with it. There have been times that he has even been arrested for trespassing. But none of the instances have stopped him. “In 2010, I was in a villa in Belgium when a police van stopped outside and we were questioned for hours. But as soon as I told the officer what I was doing, his mood completely changed and he got interested in my work,” says Elferink, who is usually accompanied by a photographer-friend.
He recalls another shoot at a partially abandoned metro station in Belgium. While the active part of the station had trains passing through every few minutes, Elferink had to run behind a train knowing he had to somehow outrun the next one to reach the abandoned part, before the next train came along and crushed him in its wake. He made it to the abandoned part in time, shot for a couple of hours and then had to make the same precarious journey back.
While most of his work has been in Europe, Elferink is ready to travel as long as the space excites him. “I’m still looking for a space in India which fits the bill. Someone suggested a place in Hampi, but that wasn’t suitable. I’m ready to come here as soon as I find something interesting,” he said.