Christian Nicolas AAdipl b. 1971

Christian divides his time between architecture and photography. If design is a compulsion to realize potential, to facilitate improvement, the photographic eye is drawn to the incongruities, the mismatches and the accidental juxtapositions. The camera is a tool for posing questions about the complexities inherent in the city, and the diverse ways public space is inhabited. It simply sees any situation as it is. By leaving interpretation for later, it relieves the immediate compulsion to resolve, inviting careful looking, and re-examination. Photographing on foot and while bicycling, evolved from a habit into an intuitive practice. Gradually patterns emerge, and become ongoing projects. 

Some cameras, are rebuilt and modified to see a particular way. The collaborative project ‘Random walk’, using photo finish photography, lead to exhibitions and a photo book. A recent return to the book format has culminated in ‘Uneasy Engagement’, published in 2023.

Christian lives in Brooklyn and is married to the artist Karla Carballar.

Education:
Diploma projects were completed with Pascal Schöning at the Architectural Association in London. Photography classes with Neil Rappaport at Bennington College left a lasting influence.

• Books:
• ‘Uneasy Engagement’, Literal – 2023
• ‘<yellow> Rythms’, Eyal Weizman – 1999
• ‘Speed-Visions of an Accelerated Age’, Jeremy Millar en Michiel Schwarz – 1998
• ‘Random Walk’, with Eyal Weizman and text by Mark Cousins – 1998