Iceland review - 2016, Page 57

ICELAND REVIEW 55
PHOTOGRAPHY
plastic,” she explains. The apples in the second series sym-
bolize global food waste. “The apple is the forbidden fruit.
It’s what got Adam and Eve kicked out of paradise in the
Bible and it’s like we’re ruining our chance in paradise,” she
asserts. And lastly, the birch trees relate to the offsetting of
carbon emissions, as they purify the air. “I used small trees
because I wanted people to think about planting, about the
trees growing. They don’t start renewing the atmosphere
until they’re big.”

FAMILY STORY
While ‘The Fall’ has a structured, rhythmic feel, Ellen Inga’s
other work is looser in both composition and approach. In
particular, she specializes in documentary-style family por-
traiture, which differs from traditional portraiture because
it takes place in the home rather than in a studio. “I go into
the home and I tell the family story,” says Ellen Inga. “I try
to be a fly on the wall. At first it takes people a while to
get used to, and the kids are always looking at the camera.
But then they forget about me and start doing
what they usually do.” Sometimes she spends
a few hours, other times a whole day or even
several days following her clients. The photo-
graphs are often taken in soft black and white,
with a sense of movement and play, portraying
children jumping, running, smiling and inter-
acting with their parents.
CHANGING LANDSCAPES
Ellen Inga says she will likely tackle more
political issues, such as the effects of global
industry, in her next projects. Near the con-
clusion of our interview, I ask what she thinks
of the current tourism boom in Iceland. “Our
country is blooming and that’s great,” she
responds. “But in a lot of ways, we weren’t
ready, we weren’t planning. We have to do
something. People in the government have
Ellen Inga spends from a few hours to several days following her clients for her documentary-style family portraiture.