Frank-Brubakken 1

An architect designer by trade, I’m also a passionate photographer. To me fine art photography is a natural extension to my aesthetic work. My photographs are serene and typically black and white where the mood is created using long exposures.

Lucky enough to have lived by the rough and beautiful coast of Norway all my life, the sea is not surprisingly the lifeblood of most of my images. The sea is the overriding element that makes my life complete, in the present, Zen if you like. When I approach the sea with my camera in hand, my pulse races and my mind blocks everything else out. For me, this proximity is a powerful solitude where man and nature are truly at one. As soon as I hear the crash of the waves, nature speaks to me with a power that never ceases to make me to listen. The message I get every time is; “listen up and look closer Frank; come and see what I have to show you”. It’s this intimate dialogue that has led me to capture the magic I see through my visual eye so I can share it with others.

Capturing nature isn’t a fast process though. Working in harmony with nature for me involves spending time and listening quietly and carefully to what nature is saying to me. I like nothing more than capturing on film the images I experience when the wind is blowing strongly, the waves are big and noisy and the clouds are turbulent in the sky. It’s the paradox of these conditions that allows me to take moody, yet calm photos using the long exposure technique. This type of image is fast becoming my passion as well as my trademark.

I adore using darkness to highlight the light it leaves in its path. The technical term for this is Tenebrism; a dramatic illumination or chiaroscuro. This terminology has its origins in Italian and is often used to describe a style of painting that combines violent contrasts of light and dark, where darkness becomes the dominating feature.

When I capture nature, my aim is to bring the true essence of the image to the attention of the viewer and take everything else away. Photography literally means painting with light, and my aim is to create photography that brings light into the viewer’s life in more ways than one. Bringing presence, mood and calm into the home is one of the main things I try to achieve with the images I create.

Many people today need to escape their hectic and stressful lives and find a source of peace and harmony. When my photography becomes this source for somebody I know I have achieved my goal. Like the homes I create, the photographs I bring into being are the perfect backdrop to a simple, stylish and confident home or office space. In the words of Leonardo da Vinci, I truly believe that “simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”.