The Mullet Atlas

concept Daniel Heikens, Rein Langeveld en Joost Nijhuis photography Daniel Heikens & Rein Langeveld design Joost Nijhuis

In the period 2011-2019, the photographers Daniel Heikens (Delft, 1980) and Rein Langeveld (The Hague, 1979) photographed a large number of men with a mullet ‘mat’ hairstyle in their hometown The Hague. Due to their enthousiasm together with the fascination of designer Joost Nijhuis (The Hague, 1980) of cultural phenomena and movements, the idea for a photo book was born. It was to be a collection of mullet men, designed like a veritable atlas, including geographic maps, pictograms and statistics based on interviews with the men. A so called Matlas.

During their research into the phenomenon “the mat” (English: mullet, Flemish: neck carpet or neck spoiler), the guys noticed that the mat is worn all over the world and often for a reason. The Masai men, for example, wear a mat to show that they are still looking for a partner. In our western culture, the hairstyle often has an anarchic appearance. It is therefore the intention of the creative trio that the Dutch / Hague Matlas will be the starting shot for a series that will cover all continents.

Dutch and English

Joost Nijhuis is a designer. Since his studies Public Space at the Design Academy Eindhoven, cultural manifestations and movements have often been a dominant theme in his work.

Rein Langeveld’s approach to portrait photography is motivated by a desire to make all people equal, which often causes his subjects to act more freely than they actually are.

Daniel Heikens graduated as a documentary photographer from the Royal Academy of Visual Arts in The Hague. Today he works as an all-round photography specialist. He is currently researching, assessing and cataloging 19th and 20th century photography for the art market at an international auction house.

size 240 x 300 mm 160 pages hardcover design Joost Nijhuis appears in June NUR 653 ISBN 978-94-6226-412-0 € 45,00