European Kaleidoscope

Blev hastigt och lustigt inbjuden till en fototävling, European Kaleidoscope. Självklart ställde jag upp. Flera hundra euro i resecheckar (om man vinner) för att ta några bilder, plus att de blir publicerade i en fotobok som den danska Europarörelsen har för avsikt att publicera.

Uppgiften var att ta och skicka in fyra bilder för i boken att kunna sammanfatta what Europe really looks like.

Bilderna skulle avspegla mitt land (1), mitt lands historia (2), mitt lands framtid (3) och slutligen en porträttbild på någon i landet. Nedan följer mina bilder tillsammans med de motiveringar jag skickat in (på engelska). Observera att namnet på personen på porträttbilden är fingerat.

1 - My Country

Sweden is - by Swedes ourselves - often referred to as the "Middle Milk Nation". For one, Swedes are large milk consumers, internationally only second to Finland. Also, Middle Milk is obviously an in-between kind of product (as opposed to Standard Milk and Low Fat Milk, the other two leading milk products in Sweden) and should therefore in this context be seen as a metaphor for the "Golden Mean"- and "just enough"-philosophy which could almost be considered unwritten law in Sweden.



2 - The History of My Country

This is Stortorget (Grand Square) in Old Town, Stockholm. In November 1520, this was the scene for the Stockholm Bloodbath, where almost a hundred people were executed after Christian II and his Danish forces successfully invaded Sweden and got Christian crowned King of Sweden. The main part of the victims were noble people and their servants. The legend has it that blood "flooded the streets, in every direction from the square". To tie it up with more internationally recognized history, the present Nobel Museum is seen in the background.

3 - The Future of My Country

Sweden is a vast and spacious land. Hence, most buildings, including those in central Stockholm are only a few stories high. This has begun to change only in the past few years and a good example of this is this skyscraper (both apartment complex and shopping mall in one) which was built and opened up only a couple of years ago. Since physical land and property only becomes more and more expensive - as opposed to its digital equivalents - the future for Sweden is the same as for other countries: don't build widely - build highly! Note the older buildings in its surroundings and how low they are.

4 - A Portrait

This man, Jong, is just doing his job. He stands on a cold and windy street in central Stockholm equipped with a sign mounted backpack which markets a buffet restaurant with Thai food. In Sweden, it's not allowed to advertise on just any empty space, so this kind of advertising has grown more and more popular. Salaries for the "sign people" are probably hundreds of times lower than the cost for an ad in a big or semi-big newspaper. And much more visible.