Orientalis

Series of 'faux' kalotypes made in Museumpark Orientalis, formerly known as the biblical open air museum. The museum, founded in the 1930’s under the protection of the catholic church, must have been one of the first religious recreational parks. Sluys, a catholic priest, had gone on pilgrimage to what was then Palestina and came back believing that seeing the holy places ‘live’ would allow for a more intense religious experience. To accommodate those believers unable to travel to Jerusalem in person, a number of significant places of the Old Testament were rebuilt in an devotional park located south of Nijmegen, a place where belief and make-belief go hand in hand.

As a rare exception to the rule, we opted for faux kalotypes to digitally emulate the atmosphere of 19th century kalotypes brought back from 'Africa' and ‘Arabia’ by traveling photographers, depicting exactly the kind of buildings and environment emulated in the theme park.