Who is Elle Kari?
The child collecting birch twigs is Elle Kari. She was a young Sámi girl from Lapland whom photographer Anna Riwkin met while documenting traditional Sámi culture. Elle Kari’s life with her family in northern Sweden became the focus of a children’s photo book. Anna Riwkin humbly portrayed Elle Kari’s childhood in up-close and personal pictures, and Elly Jannes authored the story. The book, called Elle Kari, achieved a global success.
Anna Riwkin continued photographing children growing up in various cultures around the world, creating 15 children’s photo books in the Children’s Everywhere series. The texts of many of these books were written by Astrid Lindgren.
This original vintage photo of Elle Kari, taken by Anna Riwkin in 1949-1950, will be on display in the exhibition “Untitled Nature” at Picture This Gallery, opening 26/6.
