Koos van der Lende
Panoramic landscapes of Southern Africa, made on film
Kalahari Sunrise, the Molopo, from the Classic Collection
In composition there are laws, and you must respect them. They are your foundation. But we live under grace, and grace lets you go beyond the rules. If it works, it works.
— Koos van der LendeFor eighteen years Koos van der Lende travelled the wild places of Southern Africa alone, for weeks at a time, with a large format panoramic camera and slide film. He planned each picture days ahead, where the sun would rise, when the light would fall, and then he waited, sometimes twelve days for a single frame.
His whole archive is some 1,250 panoramas. Not one has been digitally altered. What you see is what the film saw, printed as a limited edition, signed and numbered by Koos himself.
This is the De Lende Collection: his work gathered into collections, with the stories he tells of each picture.
- CameraFuji 6 × 17 cm panoramic
- Made onSlide film, never digital
- ArchiveAbout 1,250 panoramas
- Edition25 of each, signed and numbered
- Sizes80 to 140 cm wide
- Represented byOsner Gallery, Hout Bay
The Collections
Seven collections so far, each with stories and field notes. More are on the way.
Classic CollectionThe pictures that made his name, from the Kunene and the Namib to the Wild Coast and Kafue.26 panoramas
Sacred ForestsThe last indigenous forests of Southern Africa, in mist, rain and silence.8 panoramas
Evidence of MankindWhat people leave behind in the wild places: wrecks, ruins, a cross and an ox wagon.13 panoramas
Water Pear TreeThe elders of the riverbank, aged like old prints, in the light of another century.7 panoramas
Baobab CollectionAfrica's upside down tree, from Venda and Mapungubwe to the pans of Botswana.9 panoramas
Solitary SurvivorThe welwitschia, a living fossil, alone on the gravel plains of the Namib.5 panoramas
Latest ReleaseNew panoramas from the archive, from the Niassa to the Fish River Canyon.8 panoramas
Purely for the Lord
In 2002 Koos left twenty years of commercial photography behind. From then on, he says, his panoramic work was given to God: no deadlines, no quotas, only the best he could make, even if that meant coming home after two months with one picture.
Alone in the bush for weeks, he learned to prepare, to be ready, and to wait for the light he could not command.
Over time I have learned that the Lord determines the shot.— Koos van der Lende
Moments of Grace
Koos's life's work in one book. A linen cloth covered, hand assembled coffee table book in a handmade leather pouch. It opens to a full metre wide, is made only from film, and was nine years in the making. Only 1,000 copies were printed, and a small number of signed and numbered copies remain.
In Conversation
Martin Osner talks with Koos about faith, patience and a lifetime behind the camera.
Glimpse of Glory
Law and Grace
Write to Koos
This is Namaqualand, the land Koos calls home. In the panorama above, the west coast is in flower after the winter rain, a carpet of yellow running down to the Atlantic under a stormy sky, not far from his farm. It is one of the most beautiful corners of Southern Africa, and one of the most remote.
Out there Koos is far from any signal. Every now and then he drives to the top of a hill to make contact with the world. Send your message to us at Osner Gallery and we will make sure it reaches him.