The magic of collaboration with artist duo Riitta Ikonen and Karoline Hjorth

The finnish-norwegian artist duo Riitta Ikonen and Karoline Hjorth first met 10 years ago. Since then they have worked together on their ongoing collaborative project ‘Eyes as Big as Plates’. Together they photograph elderly people, and before they photograph them they camouflage them in elements from the surrounding nature. Their project and photographs have been exhibited in renowned galleries and museums all around the world.

Christina speaks to the duo about how they collaborate across borders, how the project has evolved throughout the past ten years, about their stamina in such a long-term project, how they have financed their two books through crowdfunding and what they have learned along the way. 

The conversation is in english, and happened online, as Riitta is based in New York City and Karoline lives just outside of Oslo, Norway. 

Interviewed by Christina Skreiberg

Photo: Astrid Hoff