As a photographer, I am interested in landscapes for their graphical qualities and as places for contemplation. I prefer to reduce landscapes to their essentials, bordering on minimalism, where colours and shades can create additional sensual touches. My work is often described as being at the intersection of fine art and narrative documentary photography. Ideally, I like to capture moments of everyday life with a sense of wonder. The interplay of light and place presents itself often as a theatrical backdrop for human interaction. The right circumstances add magic, some kind of pleasant accident, ideally amplified with an element of playful humour. These conditions can often be found between assignments, occasionally from privileged locations. I like to turn ordinary objects into portraits, but portraits always should reflect the person's inner life, thoughts, feelings, and experiences. A capture of the human spirit. Stylist Veronique Lejeune once wondered if I was a photographer or a philosopher. 'Probably both!', she said. 'His photos exhibit a subtle balance beyond what is accurate, slipping some intimate element of time into them. Something Gaétan Picon described as "l'admirable tremblement du temps..."
At an early age, I was drawn to cameras. My high school days focused on graphics, typography, and art, including music and theatre. At age 17, I acquired a simple and manual analogue camera with a standard lens, which allowed exploring and expanding my visual horizons. Stimulated and encouraged by teachers in high school, I started working part-time as a photojournalist, writing for a local newspaper and further developing my narrative, documentary, and portrait photography. Photos can be seen in galleries, publications, museums, and collections around the world. In 2017 I was invited to become a mentor at MoMA's course "Seeing Through Photographs". I hold a double BA and MBA from Concordia University in Montreal, Canada.
Quotes:
“Ludo Segers’ photography reaches out to that which lies deep inside us. It can make you hear silence, feel the spirit of places and their alone-ness, especially in the béguinages. The spaces and places in his photos all possess an internal life. They uncover the footprints of the past and challenge us to reclaim the essence of our existence,” observed Yolita René, an independent curator of the exhibition 'Paris-Vilnius, a Spectacular Silence' (about the Covid lockdown in 2020).
Urbanist, Laird Ryan, teaching and supervising research at the University College of Estate Management, Reading, draws a comparison between Ludo's photos and the form and structure of
J. S. Bach's compositions: "They both apply an exquisite mix of understated passion and intuitive understanding themes of apparent contrast and complexity and invite the viewer or listener on a journey to an engaging and harmonious resolution.”
Writer and journalist Justinas Suliokas said: "Ludo has a way of winning over the people he photographs, striking an instant connection and making them open up to his camera. He likes his models and they like him – a rapport that's there in the image and cannot be faked."
Johan Verbeke, former Belgian Ambassador to the USA, said, "Ludo Segers captures the world around him in his very own way, whether it is inside the White House or out in the plains of the Far West. His portraits, landscapes and photos always bring a new perspective and suggest new narratives."
Lithuanian graphic artist Arvydas Každailis observed, "Ludo's photo compositions are extremely focused and laconic. These are works of art about the world around us: people, cities and nature."
French
Mes études axées sur l’art graphique m’ont offert la chance de rencontrer un brillant professeur d’histoire de l’art qui a renforcé mon intérêt pour la couleur, la forme et la composition. Garder les compétences acquises et les enrichir, tant au niveau des prises de vue que du post-traitement, n’est pas l’œuvre d’un seul jour et fait partie, au contraire, d’un apprentissage à vie.
Par ailleurs, mon intérêt pour le graphisme et l’art n’étant jamais loin, je me promène rarement sans appareil.
Véronique Lejeune, Styliste, "Alors ? Ludo Segers est-il photographe ou plutôt philosophe ? Sans doute les deux, dans le subtil balancement de chacune des photos qu’il nous livre… Tant il parvient à glisser dans son œuvre, l’au-delà de ce qui est précis, quelque chose de l’intimité du temps, ce que Gaétan Picon nommait, « L’admirable tremblement du temps».
Johan Verbeke, l'ancien ambassadeur de Belgique aux États-Unis, disait "Ludo Segers capte le monde autour de lui dans sa propre manière, que ce soit à l'intérieur de la Maison Blanche ou dans les plaines du Far West. Ses portraits, paysages apportent toujours une nouvelle perspective et des suggestions de nouveaux récits."