2_0_ScanMag_70_Nov_2014_Text:Scan Magazine 1
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Scan Magazine | Special Theme | Education in Norway
At Bjerkely FHS students work with real clients, enabling them to learn what will be expected of them outside the educational environment. Photo: Esther-Elise Gisholt
Capturing the moment Few schools can say that they’ll take you to the top of the Empire State Building, and even fewer can say that parts of your education will take place there. Boasting an impressive and diverse photography programme among other courses developed to advance your creative abilities, Bjerkely Folkehøyskole has blazed their own trail in the educational sphere – and the Big Apple is just the beginning. By Julie Lindén
“I always say to my students on their first day here: ‘From now on you are considered professionals, not students’,” says photography teacher Anne Marit Holmseth. “It’s important emphasising to them that we are training them to be professionals, and therefore we should, I believe, teach by example and treat them as the professionals they are working so hard to become.” Unmatched professional training Holmseth’s approach is in every sense representative of Bjerkely FHS as a whole
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– a school passionately dedicated to bringing out the best in each of their students, creatively but also personally. Motivating everyone to take part in the activities on offer is a goal, and one that is upheld by putting students in contact with some of the biggest industry professionals in Norway. For instance, the mid-course period will see photography students working closely with Morten Krogvold, one of the country’s most celebrated photographers and visual artists, who has shot portraits of notables such as Nelson Mandela and Norway’s Crown Princess Mette Marit.
“We are the only institution where he teaches these days,” says Holmseth proudly. “He poses a remarkable focus on extracting the true meaning of photography from our students, asking them questions like ‘who are you as a photographer?’ and ‘how will you set yourself apart from others?’. He is a master at motivating them, breaking down the elements of their interest before building them back up again – at which point they have a sound knowledge of their abilities.” Meeting real demands on the market The workshop method of learning is a favoured one at Bjerkely, emphasised by Holmseth as a realistic form of creation, where students learn what will be expected of them outside an educational environment, and not just inside the classroom. “There are multiple studios on the school premises, along with a darkroom