Jōhatsu

• Photographer
  Ellen Kramer
• Technical Info
  Black And White, Digital Camera
• Photo Date
  203-2024

When I was young, a dear family member passed away in my presence. I noticed the liberation of the spirit and I felt that it was good, that death is an inseparable part of life. It became the first of a long series of end-of-life encounters. I myself was on the edge of life when death touched me for a moment. I entered a transitional world in a no man's land between life and death. In the series Jōhatsu, which literally means “evaporation”, I show this transitional world as I have experienced it and to which I sometimes long to return.

Originally trained as a medical doctor, I worked in oncology for 27 years before transitioning into photography. My work explores impermanence, memory, and the unseen through a tactile, poetic approach. I create layered prints on translucent materials such as organza, combined with silk or fine art paper, and finish them with embroidery or gold leaf. Framing is an integral part of my work. Inspired by the Japanese concept of Ma, I explore the space between presence and absence. I studied at the Fotoacademie in Amsterdam and hold a degree in Photography.