If you look out for them, you'll see them everywhere. And if you were born in Thailand, like photographer Thomas Nondh Jansen (33) and adopted by Dutch parents at the age of two, you should definitely pay attention: Buddha statues. You will find them in all sizes, colors and materials in gardens and on balconies, in living rooms on the windowsill, in cafes and canteens next to the drink glasses. And you know: in the country where you were born it doesn't work like that. There are Buddha images in the temple, offerings are made and people put flowers next to them. Thomas Nondh Jansen has photographed Buddha images in about thirty places in two and a half years, earlier this month in a coffee shop. In the end, he selected sixteen photos for his project. In those photos, the Buddha images are always approximately at eye level: the viewer looks straight at them. The Dutch Buddha is the name of the latest photo project that Thomas Nondh Jansen has been working on for two and a half years. Sometimes the images he photographed were outside, other times he rang the doorbell and told what he was doing. “The special thing was: everyone always let me in.” It is, he thinks afterwards, "perhaps a certain type of person" who buys Buddha statues. "Even if they select those statues in a color that matches the sofa, or a size that works well in the garden: a Buddha statue still refers to peace and spirituality."
Publicatie 'De Hollandse Boeddha.', NRC, 28-02-2019
Publicatie 'De Hollandse Boeddha.', Noord-Hollands Dagblad, 08-03-2019