People. Most of them we know nothing about, but for what we see: just their faces, and sometimes a glimpse of their surroundings. Individual people sometimes, sometimes groups of people – but always: personalities.

These are not just ‘portraits’. Some traditional portraits are quite detached – it seems as if the photographer sneaked in upon his ‘victim’, trying to hide his own presence; this gives us, the viewers the impression to be intruders as well, voyeurs. Even when the portrayed seems to look at us, distance remains: it’s obvious that the photographer has acted as a director – he posed the person three quarters away from us, added some indication of habitat and, just for the duration of the session a characteristic prop (a pen, a book, a camera), and, of course he asked for a smile – unnatural and frozen.

Willem M. Besselink works quite differently. He, too, is in full control. Either on the spot, or maybe afterwards in his digital dark room as well, he carefully composed his images. All but one of his portraits are fully frontal and symmetrical: these people stand in front of the photographer and he in front of them. The images’ careful and narrow framing and technical qualities (sharpness and pixel density) allows these people to step close – we may almost touch them.

These people are quite conscious of the photographer’s presence, quite conscious of being photographed. They really seem to have a good time, these people and this photographer, and spontaneously they play along with him. This makes him tangibly present.

Willem M. Besselink didn’t travel to just ‘look’ at these people – he went to really meet them. In person. ‘Across continents, across cultures’. For an instant there was contact, real contact. The photo’s that he took during these meetings allow us a peek over his shoulder. For a moment we are present as well, meeting these people face to face.

©  Willem M. Besselink, Nijmegen