In The Final Takeover photo series I zoom in on nature that finds opportunities to thrive in a less than perfect environment. These examples of solutions that nature has found in millions of years, to live, grow, evolve and thrive, are fascinatingly simple to me. I find it astounding to learn that when mankind is erased from the earth in one blow, nature only needs a few hundred years to crumble even the highest manmade skyscraper and take back the planet. It will always seek out ways to live and grow, no matter the adversity. This crumbling of manmade objects is represented in the edges of the photographs. The heavy contrasts show the apparent discrepancies between man and nature: the static and seemingly invincible objects confronted by the smooth but compelling force of nature. The entire 15 part series is also the story of birth, willpower, ambition, misfortune, confrontation and authenticity. Aspects of life that man knows all too well.

About

For 20 years Françoise was a photo editor for Dutch newspapers and magazines. She left photography and worked as an independent couples counselor for nearly a decade. During that time she became intrigued about how important being in nature is to a stressed soul. She wrote a book about how to use nature to gain self confidence and become your authentic self. Françoise started to miss photography and decided to close her counseling practice and take up the camera to seek out nature’s lessons and capture them the way she experiences them. She is convinced that when we open up to nature's solutions for life's complications, we will rediscover our authenticity and what life is truly about. Photography forces Françoise to feel connected to the environment. By looking intensively and sensing the environment, the essence becomes tangible to her.