Danielle van Zadelhoff is a Dutch photographer, who now lives and works in Antwerp (Belgium). Danielle likes shooting in different genres, but it is portraiture, which brought her recognition. Most of the portraits are created in the classical manner with reference to the paintings of the great masters of the Renaissance. Deep but rather scarce color palette, dark background and play of shadow and light constitute Danielle’s laconic style. However, it’s the essence of works that doesn’t let you forget her oeuvre. The photographer manages to notice and depict those feelings and emotions that are hidden deeply inside and are not evident. Outer appearance turns out to be just a mask, which on closer examination is dissolved in a storm of emotions that the viewer empathizes with the sitter. The latest series of Danielle is called "From deep within" and helps us to peek into the inner world of a person, to feel what he or she feels and share the same sensations. In order to achieve this effect the artist uses her accumulated life experience and favorite shooting techniques. For a long time Danielle has been living in old houses and even in a church, where she could see the daylight coming from old stained-glass windows. The sunbeams, which were passing through them, always had a soft and muted color, highlighting the objects lying in the obscure background. As Danielle recalls, "This particular light learned me to see and focus on the main thing and to get to the essence of things.” The inner world of a person that could be seen in the works of Danielle, is not staged, but true and fragile, rich in emotions and delicate in feelings. Her works seem to be saturated with the ancient atmosphere and seem timeless because of its fullness and simplicity. While working with sitters, usually non-professionals, Danielle tries to intrude into the interior of the person by using her own charms and openness. Among the works of Danielle there are some, where the sitter turns away from the camera or is in a half-turn, with the face unseen. For Danielle this moment, when a person is hiding, ceases to pose, forgets about the camera, and thereby becomes completely liberated, seems to be the decisive one, the moment of pure and real underlying emotions so often hidden behind a mask in everyday life. Danielle’s series “From deep within” is all about life and feelings, which sometimes are so hard to notice in the transience of life.
