"Skara Sommarland, 1989"
From the series "Landet utom sig". Signed Lars Tunbjörk verso. C-print, image 28.5 x 36 cm. Sheet 38 x 43 cm.
Provenance
Editor Christer Mårdbrant (1948-2025), Stockholm.
Mårdbrant's interest in art, design, and antiques was broad, passionate, and tireless. His home in Gamla stan in Stockholm was filled with objects that had been acquired over the years with glowing enthusiasm and great care. Many epochs and styles coexisted, where contemporary art, folk art, Rococo, Danish design from the mid-20th century, and postmodern design harmonised in a highly personal interior.
Exhibitions
Fotografiska, Stockholm, "Tunbjörklandet – blicken från sidan", 13 September - 1 December 2018, another example exhibited.
Strandverket, Marstrand, Fotografier utom sig – Lars Tunbjörk 1956-2015", 11 June - 25 September 2016, another example exhibited.
Galleri Kontrast, Stockholm, "Kyssar", Pressfotografernas Klubb, 1996, another example exhibited.
Nordiska Museet, Stockholm, "Landet utom sig", 1994, another example exhibited.
Literature
Maud Nycander, Göran Odbratt, Kathy Ryan, "Lars Tunbjörk - retrospektiv", 2018, illustrated on p. 71.
Lars Tunbjörk, "Landet utom sig", 1993, illustrated on full-page pl. 77.
More information
Lars Tunbjörk’s major breakthrough came in 1993 with the image series and photo book “Landet utom sig”. His sharp observations of small-town life in transition were highly appreciated, and his unique style was cemented in the project “I Love Borås!”. The book was published in 2006 and contains not only images from Tunbjörk’s hometown but also a large number of photographs taken during his travels between 1989 and 1996.
Tunbjörk’s images are at once melancholic, surreal, and sometimes slightly absurd. His way of noticing details, as well as selecting framing and subjects, was unique. His perspective was distinctive because, with the help of the camera, he could reveal what was invisible to the rest of us: an image of ourselves and our society. His subjects always revolve around everyday life—the life unfolding here and now for ordinary people; shopping for cheap clothes at Ullared, a dirty slide in Borås, or a messy office in Tokyo. Through his conceptual photography, Tunbjörk successfully combines documentation with humor. A similar approach can be found in the work of the British photographer Martin Parr.
“Tunbjörkare” became a term as early as the 1990s, influencing the way we see and inspiring filmmakers and photographers around the world. This was partly due to his unusual photographic technique: Tunbjörk used flash in daylight with a self-constructed device that spread light evenly across all parts of the image and reduced depth. The result is unforgiving—showing pale winter skin, the tangle of cables under a desk, the garish colors of shopping malls, and the absurdity of amusement park decorations.
In 2023, around 300 of Tunbjörk’s images were exhibited at Fabriken Bästekille in Österlen, one of the largest exhibitions ever dedicated to his work. Last year (2025), a retrospective exhibition was shown at Kulturhuset in Stockholm, alongside a stage performance inspired by Tunbjörk’s photography at Kulturhuset Stadsteatern, directed by Anna Vnuk.
Lars Tunbjörk is represented in collections including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Centre Pompidou in Paris, Moderna Museet in Stockholm, as well as Maison Européenne de la Photographie in Paris and Borås Konstmuseum
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Image rights
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