Stella Nova

Visiting Sarah Paaschburg

SARAH PAASCHBURG AND HER DAUGHTER CARMEN
IN HER PRIVATE HOME, HELLERUP
40 YEARS OLD
PHOTOGRAPHER
@SARAHPAASCHBURG

Trine: DO YOU HAVE A TATTOO?

Sarah: No, I don´t… It was a big wish when I was younger, and I spent a lot of time wondering about what the motif should be, -what it should say, what the symbol should be - and I kept drawing and drawing. I really think it looks super cool on the right people but it just never got any further than this. I guess it wasn´t really meant to be.  I never found the exact motif and I suppose it was because I didn´t manage to find something that meant enough to me and was so important that I was willing to have it engraved on my skin.

Sarah: I even had a gift card from a friend of mine who also pushed hard for me to jump into it, so I probably talked a lot about it.

Trine: COULD IT BE YOUR FEAR OF REGRETTING?

Sarah: Yes definitely… And now as I look back, - I also think that it is a very loud and clear description of that age, as one often falls for a trend that is in a certain time in your life.

Trine: A SIGN OF TIMES BURNED INTO YOUR SKIN…

Sarah: Exactly – the look of the tattoo and where you place it on your body - immediately gives associations to a certain time or a certain type. You might have changed over time but the
tattoo is still the same. You cannot be a chameleon anymore when you’ve got a tattoo.

Trine: AND WHERE YOU COME FROM... IT IS A TIME PICTURE; BUT ALSO A STATEMENT THAT TELLS OTHER THINGS IN MORE OR LESS DEGREE.

Sarah: Exacly, then you no longer have the opportunity to be a chameleon if you go out that way.

Trine: ARE YOU A CHAMELEON?

Sarah: Yes I guess so. I like to follow times and I am also  one of those people who like the newest music better. I don’t cling to the past.. I like to work my way forward and follow my contemporaries. I also work hard to get acquainted with all new electronics, new programs and such… You know…. When you fall out of that game you are out of the loop.

Trine: SO YOU DON`T LOOK BACK?

Sarah: Only a bit maybe… But at least I am happy that I don´t look back on a tattoo. I was once about to get a kiss tattooed on my wrist and I´m glad now that I didn’t… If so I would have to look at it all the time – I would find it strange and awkward to look at that every single day.

Trine: ONE MIGHT THINK THAT IT WOULD BE NICE TO GET A KISS EVERY DAY…

Sarah: Yes that’s right – but it´s probably just that I´m feeling a tattoo is holding you on to something and that it´s hard to move forward!

Trine: SO AWAY WITH KISSES AND IN WITH THE FUTURE?

Sarah: Yes, it´s probably the stigma I don´t like…you can’t signal the accountant type and then have a full rock´n´roll arm.

Trine: NO, OR A FOLK DANCER FOR THAT MATTER OF SAKE.

Sarah: Exactly… I like better when people can´t judge me so easily and that I´m able to make a fast change of direction.

Trine: SO YOU ARE A CHAMELEON?

Sarah: Yes, and I´m also into astrology and have found out that I have Gemini in Venus.

Trine: WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

Sarah: It’s supposed to mean that you are fast forward and don’t like to get too stuck into things. I´m not happy when things get too melancholic.

Trine: ARE YOU SUPERFICIAL?

Sarah: Yes and no… I don’t hope so – but I am just good at moving on and when I was younger I was not the kind of person who suffered from heartache over some guy… It was just about moving on forward.

Trine: LUCKY YOU

Sarah: Yes, - I look ahead…it is kind of a setting so that things won’t fill me up and go too deep… Having said that I can only hope and pray that nothing really serious will occur to my loved ones or me…..

Trine: YES THAT IS A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT MATTER...BUT YOU ARE GOOD AT PULLING YOURSELF UP…AND I GUESS THIS IS BASICALLY ALSO YOUR ABILITY TO LOOK AHEAD AND SEE NEW THINGS AND OPPORTUNITIES?

Sarah: Yes and I think those are also the skills that I use every day when I, as a photographer and creative, relate to new teams and new people. It takes an ability to delete the board and start from anew in the actual setup… And I guess this is also a bit chameleon like.

Trine: BUT A PHOTOGRAPHY IS, IF ANYTHING, ALSO A TIME PICTURE.. A FREEZE OF A TIME AND PLACE, - JUST LIKE A TATTOO.

Sarah: Yes, but at least it doesn´t stick to your body like a stamp for the rest of your life. And again… I like to follow the times and to be part of the development and that is also something you can express through photography. Also I like to add that I really think that tattoos can be drop dead cool… The right motifs on the right people – that´s nice. It is again a question of the right staging… Exactly like a well composed picture can be.

Trine: THANK YOU SARAH… FOR YOUR TIME AND BECAUSE YOU SHARED A BIT OF YOUR THOUGHTS WITH US.