Dutch-born, Brooklyn based photographer Martien Mulder’s work is marked by an elegant serenity that suggests—and evokes—a sense of wonder found in quiet moments, beautifully framed. Spanning portraiture, architecture, interiors, and beyond, Mulder’s images reveal a fascination with the world and a reverence for the creative spirit—serving as gorgeous reminders of the magic that exists all around, when we’re able to slow down and really look.

Read on to learn more.

Anna Carnick / When did you first know you wanted to be a photographer? Was there a particular moment or encounter that set you on your path?

Martien Mulder/ When I was 15 years old, I visited New York City for the first time in my life. The anticipation was high because I knew the city from photographs and movies. I felt a strong urge to take my own black and white pictures of the city, and snagged the family camera to do so. I brought the film rolls back home and dove into the darkroom of a friend to learn how to print. One image—a picture I took in Harlem of a man crossing in front of our car, his perfect silhouette against the long hazy street—cemented my love for photography. The fact that I took that shot, developed the film, and was able to see it come up on the photo paper…pure magic.

AC / How would you encapsulate your approach to your photography in general?

MM/ My approach is based on simplicity. I look for the essence in the subject. I don’t like to manipulate what I am capturing; rather, I aim to find and frame the beauty that is already present. So it is a pretty direct and pure approach.

AC / What do you most hope people take away from encounters with your work?

MM / Most people tell me they are transported to a calmer realm when they look at my images. A sense of quiet, spaciousness, harmony. I like for the viewer to slow down, so they can actually notice new things about the things they thought they knew.

AC / How does your way of seeing the world show up in your work? And has this evolved over time?

MM / How I see the world is directly translated into my images. I focus on the elegant, sparse, uncluttered beauty that surrounds us. The rest is simply left out of frame.

AC / Given the variety of your subjects—ranging from portraiture to architecture, interiors, landscape, and still life—how would you describe the connective thread that exists throughout your practice?

MM  / The connective thread in my images is the minimalistic quality in each photograph. I have pointed my lens at a wide variety of subjects, always in search of the same result: a calm, delicately abstract representation of them.

AC / Does your approach change when capturing spaces versus people? If so, how?

MM  / Whether I capture a space or a person, I consider it to be a portrait; therefore, I go about it in a similar way. I want to reveal the core of the subject, in a natural and genuine way. The only difference is that a person has a self awareness that needs to be navigated, and there is an energy exchange that is more complex. A space just offers itself to you, which is such a welcoming feeling.

AC / Can you share any experiences you’ve had as a photographer that have been particularly meaningful—something that has stayed with you and influenced your path going forward?

MM / I have had the great fortune to meet very inspiring people, and get to know them a little bit by portraying them, observing their work, and hearing what they have to say. By photographing them I get a chance to study them, their work, and often also their personal surroundings—the last of which can be so telling of who they are. It has opened my eyes on so many levels, especially getting a glimpse of how they choose to live, what they value, how they have expressed their ideas. People like Helmut Lang, Jeanne Gang, Mira Nakashima, Isabella Rossellini; they all have created entire universes that are so personal.

Some of these meetings have shown me something that stayed with me, and that influenced my path. When I spent the day with [record producer and co-founder of Def Jam Recordings] Rick Rubin, for example, I learned what it is like when someone is completely open to creativity. Rick didn’t project any ideas or limitations onto my shoot. He didn’t let vanity get in the way, and he was not afraid to be vulnerable. It was so freeing! I could capture him, his space, and all his belongings however I wanted, and he did not try to intervene in that process. It was the one and only time that has happened in my entire career, but I felt it was so right, that I will always keep aiming for that.

AC / That sounds really inspiring. Where is one of the most unexpected or unforgettable places your work has taken you?

MM/ The most unforgettable place my work has taken me is Marfa, Texas. Not only because of the cinematic landscape and beautiful desert light, but because I had the incredible opportunity to photograph all the Donald Judd Spaces with a carte blanche. I immersed myself for a week in the mind of Judd, discovering his endless compositions and play with art, objects, and space. His obsessions, his inspirations, his life’s work…my lens was right there for it all.

AC / That’s beautiful. Can you share one or two projects in which you felt especially connected to the subject and the end result shows it?

MM/ I had a profound connection during a recent shoot I did for Ark Journal at the residence of artist Su Xiaobai. The architect, Oliver Jungel, crafted a beautiful, quiet space around Xiaobai’s art. Upon entering the home I was deeply moved; the sculptural art had a huge emotional impact on me. As I continued to shoot, I realized this was made possible by Oliver’s skillful creation of just the right amount of space and light around the work. It allowed the art to resonate fully, which is such a delicate balance to achieve.

AC/ What’s next for you? What are you working on now?

MM / I am working on a number of short- and long-term projects at the same time. One I’m particularly excited about is a new exhibition in Paris later this year of my personal work INTERVAL, based on my book by the same title. The images are studies of the in-between. They spring from the Japanese concept of ma… Ma is described as a pause in time (an interval); it speaks of the void as opposed to the object, the silence in between the notes. The book draws from my archive of 25 years of photography, all over the globe.