Märta Thisner is one of Sweden’s most prominent photographers. Image-search her name and you’ll find a cross-section of recent cultural figures from the worlds of dance, music and literature. Her portraits have an immediate readability, a refined contrast between a careful gaze and the brutal contours of her flash, which seems equally suited to rock and poetry as it does to still-lifes with glass sculptures.
This is how she first came into contact with Åsa Jungnelius — at a photo shoot for the Public Luxury exhibition at Arkdes in 2018. Jungnelius is one of the most respected designers and artists in the country, constantly renegotiating the relationship between the two forms. Although glass is her primary element, Jungnelius’ work is to be considered contemporary art, with its integral parts of social commentary and criticism. Mussels is a portrait of Jungnelius in her natural habitat 2018–2024. Thisner is present as the seeds are being sown in the studio and when they’re harvested in the garden in Månsamåla or at the glass- works in Kosta. In the photographs: a not-quite-feral cat, a thinned forest, a unique sculpture with an inner universe. The living encounter the withered, the everyday is visited by the sublime and braided together with ropes of many colors. Openness prevails. The unpaginated pages might seem random or like fragments of memory. Close your eyes and they are still there. What do we remember? What lingers is reformulated over time and assembled in new sequences. In an infinity, relative to life. In the book there is also a poem by the Swedish writer Tone Schunnesson. Märta Thisner is a Stockholm-based photographer. Since finishing photography school in Stockholm and in the UK, she has developed a noticeable aesthetic while capturing some of Sweden's most captivating personalities. Märta's ability to capture a moment has made her a sought-after photographer in many industries, both commercial and creative. She approaches her subjects with respect and empowerment, highlighting their most human and sympathetic features while creating immersive portraits. Märta Thisner has previously published Baby (puss Publications & Sailor Press, 2023) and Drunk in Love (Journal, 2019).