Isabelle Bacher

The lure of the remote and barren landscape of Arctic Norway has proven irresistible to Isabelle Bacher. The Austrian architect and photographer explains to Keith Wilson why she moved there for five years and what keeps her coming back for more…

Austrian by birth and with Norwegian roots, Isabelle Bacher’s formative years to her growth as a landscape photographer sound nothing less than idyllic. It was during childhood summers in Norway that she first appreciated the beauty of nature. “My heart beats north of the Arctic Circle,” she answers when I ask how her love affair with Norway and the Arctic began. “The Scandinavian midsummer is a paradise for children. The days are endless and it never gets truly dark at night. What I remember best is the clear air and the sound of the waves crashing against the small boat moored on the shore right in front of our house. My parents took my little sister and me fishing every morning. During these summers, I not only learnt to fish, make a fire and speak Norwegian, but above all to live with nature.”

When trying to analyse why she prefers a frozen landscape to a sun-drenched tropical island, Isabelle says, “Maybe it’s because of my Norwegian mother and the Scandinavian blood in my veins, my sun-sensitive skin, or because barren landscapes have always inspired me more than palm trees and beaches. With its Arctic light, dancing Northern Lights, the midnight sun, and the blue-hour, the north is really magical for me.” As she speaks, you can almost see the images she creates when describing a part of the world that she embraces with all her heart. So, it’s not surprising when she tells me that her love of photography also began early on…

Which came first, your love of landscapes or photography?