Marken / Henk van der Leeden

From 29 April 1969 onward, photographer Henk van der Leeden (1941) lived and worked on Marken for a few decades. He lived in a house adjoining the church. The artist Reinier Pijnenburg (1884-1968) once had his studio in this same house.

As a consequence of his many photo assignments, Van der Leeden was more often away from home than on Marken. ‘I was often away for so long that various elderly neighbours died in my absence. I suddenly realized that Marken was in the process of change, that a whole generation was gradually disappearing. I became fascinated by that authentic hairstyle with the corkscrew curls, I wanted to record that.’ However, this was easier said than done, as women from Marken were not enthusiastic about having their portraits made. Perhaps they would do it now and again for a painter, but certainly not for a professional photographer. So Henk thought up a trick: the polaroid photo. He made three polaroid photos, gave two of them away, and kept the best for himself. And that worked. The people from Marken could immediately see the result and received something tangible in return.

With the construction of the dike between Monnickendam and Marken in 1959, the modern era made rapid inroads on Marken. Inhabitants in traditional costume passed away. Henk van der Leeden managed to capture traditional Marken culture at the interface of this change. The photos displayed here show people from Marken in their everyday clothes and in their festive Orange and Whitsun costume. The men, women and couples pose in front of their jam-packed houses, squeezed together in a landscape that is further empty. Their portraits form exceptional documents of historical interest.

The publication accompanying the exhibition is on sale in the Museum shop.