Jenny Boot: on beauty

Abstract

Jenny Boot started her professional life experimenting with painting, but eventually found her art form in photography. Her photos breathe the atmosphere of the works of the old Dutch masters through similar her themes and lighting. Although beauty is the starting point for Jenny's work, her photographs are more than just aesthetic. The longer you look, the more layers unfold before your eyes. Her work is modern and draws attention to current issues. Jenny made a contemporary translation of the iconic painting 'Girl with a Pearl Earring' by Vermeer, photographing a black model in the same setting. The reason for this work was her realisation that it's hard to find any black models in museums. She also made a series of portraits of women with old-fashioned millstone collars. If we look more closely, however, we suddenly see that the collars are not made of fabric, but of money notes, cigarettes and sanitary towels, for example. In the photo book 'On Beauty' we are invited and challenged to look at the world through the eyes of Jenny Boot. The book is a beautiful summary of the photographer's work over the years.