Born in Colombia, and raised in the Danish town of Dybbøl, photographer Michael José (b.1991) harnesses a blend of digital and analogue photography to document life as he sees it. Currently based in Berlin, where he discovers many of his subjects while exploring the city on foot or by bike, José is committed to capturing the breadth of human experience — from the beautiful to the benign and everything that sits between. Demonstrating an eye for atmosphere and a photographic flair that allows him to immortalise moments in the spirit with which they occur, his expansive variety of projects are connected by a subtle visual language that speaks to the connections he creates within the intimate space between himself and those he shoots.

Adopted from Colombia as a baby, and raised close to the Danish-German border by his adoptive parents, José relocated to Copenhagen on the cusp of adulthood, just after graduating from high school. It was here that he attended his first punk show — performed by a friend’s band — in 2019.

“I brought my camcorder, point-and-shoot film camera and watched the show from the stage while trying to capture some moments from the packed basement at Underwerket. The handful of photos I got that night, ended up being the beginning of my time with Halshug, which at the same time was the beginning of the end for Halshug as a band. I was fortunate to spend one and a half years with my friends, following them through the recording phases of their last album ‘Dream’, shooting the cover and being on the road with them on three tours. Even though this was the end for Halshug, it ended up being the beginning for me, as a photographer.”

Travel has remained central to José’s creative practice, and while much of his photography provides insights into the underworlds and subcultures of Berlin and Copenhagen, it is his recent transformative exploration of Colombia that promises to be his most emotional and culturally rich work yet.

Follow
@michaeljose