01 Oct 2026
Talk Permalink

Presenting Grazia’s Woman of the Year – Society award.

October 1, 2026

Yesterday, I had the honour of presenting Grazia’s Woman of the Year – Society award.

It is easy to talk about change from a distance. For many years, my work as a photographer has been about getting close to people and trying to understand their realities — from conflict and social vulnerability to environmental issues and the people living in the midst of them.

That is why it feels meaningful to be part of recognising women who are themselves helping to create change in society.

Thank you to Grazia and EVA Magazine for the trust and for a wonderful evening.

And congratulations to Nevena Basarova — truly well deserved.

28 Sep 2026
interview Permalink

Interview in the Bulgarian magazine EVA-September (Olof Jarlbro – The Optimist Without Illusions)

September 28, 2026

Published in EVA Magazine September, Bulgaria

 A new interview with me has been published in the Bulgarian magazine EVA, under the title “Олоф Ярлбро – Оптимистът без илюзии” (Olof Jarlbro – The Optimist Without Illusions).

In the interview, I talk about the origins of my photographic practice, from my first experiences in Nepal to documenting war, social vulnerability and environmental issues around the world.

We also talk about Poly and the people I met while photographing plastic pollution in Southeast Asia, as well as photography, artificial intelligence, family and the responsibility that comes with gaining access to people’s lives.

“History is being written before your eyes, and you are standing there with a camera, trying to make the most of the moment.”

The interview also looks back at something much more personal — the eight-year-old boy who secretly sailed away from home in his small Optimist boat in search of adventure, only to be found by the coast guard twelve hours later.

Text by Teodora Nikolova.
EVA Magazine, Bulgaria, September, 2026.

Visit magazine

25 Sep 2026
Exhibition Permalink

POLY EXTENDED AT SYNTHESIS GALLERY, SOFIA

September 25, 2026

POLY EXTENDED AT SYNTHESIS GALLERY, SOFIA

Due to continued public interest, Poly at Synthesis Gallery in Sofia has been extended until 6 October 2026.

The exhibition has attracted a growing number of visitors during its final weeks, and the extension offers a further opportunity to experience the project in Sofia.

Poly is a long-term photographic project exploring what happens to plastic after it leaves our hands. Developed over several years in Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines and India, the project follows discarded plastic through collection, sorting, transportation and informal recycling.

At its core, however, Poly is less about plastic itself than about the people living and working on the other side of our consumption — and the connections between labour, survival, environment and the global economy.

The exhibition was previously presented at Dunkers Kulturhus in Helsingborg, Sweden, where it was shown for more than five months and received the award for Best Art Exhibition from Nöjesnytt Helsingborg.

POLY
Synthesis Gallery
Sofia, Bulgaria
Extended until 6 October 2026

]Visit Synthesis Gallery →

20 Sep 2026
Exhibition, Slide show Permalink

WHAT LIES BENEATH at Synthesis Gallery in Sofia

September 20, 2026

Last week I had the pleasure of presenting WHAT LIES BENEATH at Synthesis Gallery in Sofia, in connection with my exhibition Poly, currently on view at the gallery.

The artist talk brought together photographs from several of my long-term projects, spanning the Philippine drug war, illegal gold mining in the Philippines, and rat-hole coal mining in the Philippines and India.

Although these projects take place in very different contexts, they share a common thread: looking at what happens to people when they find themselves at the bottom of larger political, economic and environmental systems.

My work often looks at larger political, economic and environmental realities through the people who live and work within them.

Thank you to Synthesis Gallery for hosting the talk, and to everyone who came and shared their thoughts and questions.

10 Sep 2026
Exhibition, keynote speaker, Slide show Permalink
Judilyn Forio lost her uncle Jun Jun in the Drug war. He was shot 8 times by unidentified men. The only item the family still possess in remembrance of Jun Jun, is the cross that was hanging on his coffin during his wake…
Judilyn Forio lost her uncle Jun Jun in the Drug war. He was shot 8 times by unidentified men. The only item the family still possess in remembrance of Jun Jun, is the cross that was hanging on his coffin during his wake…

WHAT LIES BENEATH | Presentation and artist talk with Olof Jarlbro

September 10, 2026

WHAT LIES BENEATH | Presentation and artist talk with Olof Jarlbro

17 September, 6:30 PM – Synthesis Gallery
*Free entry

On 17 September at 6:30 PM, we invite you to meet Swedish photographer Olof Jarlbro, whose exhibition Poly is currently on view at Synthesis Gallery.

 

Under the title WHAT LIES BENEATH, Jarlbro will present a selection of photographs from several of his long-term projects. The presentation moves from the Philippine drug war to illegal gold mining in the Philippines and rat-hole mining for coal in the Philippines and India.

On the surface, these projects concern very different places and conflicts. Yet throughout his work, Jarlbro keeps returning to the same question: What happens to people when they find themselves at the bottom of a larger political or economic system? In the drug war, we encounter people caught in a brutal political reality. In the illegal mines, people risk their lives to make a living. In the coal mines, working conditions and environmental consequences become a direct reflection of our global demand for energy.
For Jarlbro, larger stories often become visible through the ordinary – a face, a gaze, a body or a working environment. As with Poly, these projects ultimately deal with human progress and the consequences we leave behind.

“Behind every resource, every product and every system, there is a human being.” – Olof Jarlbro

More here

Contact

Phone: +46 76 257 18 10
email: info@olofjarlbro.net

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