In her work, which originates in her ever-growing archive, Ruth van Beek often uses the established visual codes of photography. The images, mainly from old books, become her tools, source material, and context. Van Beek physically intervenes in the pictures – folding, cutting, or adding pieces of painted paper – rearranging and manipulating the image long enough to reveal the universe that lies within. ‘The Oldest Thing’ features numerous collages, archival images, and paintings in a...

At his workspace in the centre of Amsterdam, when the afternoon sun is just right, Thomas Manneke captures still lifes and portraits of his daughter, Laurie, using an 8x10 inch plate camera. Most photographs in this book were made in collaboration with his daughter. The objects in the book are made especially to photograph them. Sometimes they are inspired by found objects, like a small grey stone with whimsical white lines or by a web created by caterpillars. Some objects were inspired by ar...