Mattias Klum
Encyclopedia
Mattias Klum is a Swedish
freelance photographer and film producer in natural history
and cultural
subjects. He is the son of Swedish academic educator Arne Klum and Ingegärd Klum, née Stefanson. Klum has worked full-time as a freelance photographer since 1986, and as a cinematographer and director on numerous film and television projects since 1994. In an artistic way that is entirely his own, Klum describes and portrays animals, plants, and natural and cultural settings in the form of articles, books, films, lectures and exhibitions.
Klum has had several wildlife documentaries shown on Swedish national TV and has also had his work featured in Wildlife Conservation
, Audubon
, Geo
, National Geographic, Terre Sauvage, Stern, Der Spiegel
and the New York Times
among others.
In 1997 National Geographic Magazine
published Mattias Klum’s photographs for the first time, which made him the first Swede to have his work on the cover, then and still as one of National Geographic’s youngest contributors. Since 1997, he has produced a number of articles and eight cover stories for the magazine, including “Malaysia’s Secret Realm” (August 1997), “Asia’s Last Lions” (June 2001), "Meerkats Stand Tall" (September 2002) and "What Darwin Didn't Know" (February 2009). Klum's photographs have been exhibited in one-man shows at reputable museums and art galleries in the USA, Sweden
, Malaysia, India
, Japan
, Great Britain
, Estonia
, Denmark
, Botswana
, Spain
, China
and Singapore
among other countries. Klum has published ten books, four of them available in English: Exploring the Rainforest, Borneo Rainforest, Horse People and Being There.
In 2007 Klum contributed to the starting of a publishing company, Tierra Grande Publishing, the fundraising Terra Magna Foundation and EXPEDITIONSVERIGE.SE (Expedition Sweden), a five-year long environment and inspiration project about Sweden and the Baltic Sea Media Project together with producer Folke Rydén. He has also coached and collaborated with Sweden's Prince Carl Philip
.
and Brunei
(1988), Nigeria
(1990), Brazil
and Costa Rica
(1991), Malaysian Borneo
(1995–1996), India
(1999), Guyana
(1999), India
(2000), Malaysia, Thailand
, India
and South Africa
(2001), Ecuador
, Panama
and Mongolia
(2002), Malaysia (2003 and 2004), Peru
and Antarctica (2005), The Linnaeus Expedition to seven continents (2006 and 2007), Iceland
(2007) and Indonesia
, Malaysia (2007 and 2008), Brazil
, Ecuador
, Argentina
, Chile
and Australia
(2008), Italy
, Germany
and Kenya
(2009), Malaysia, Rwanda
, Congo DRC, Mozambique
, Botswana
, South Africa
and Raja Ampat New Guinea
(2010), People's Republic of China
, Vietnam
, Cameroon
, Republic of the Congo
, Fiji
and Italy
(2011).
Klum has produced documentary films including Borneo’s Rainforest and The Brittle Thread (Asia’s Last Lions) with his wife and colleague Monika Klum and The Linnaeus Expedition
with producer Folke Rydén
. Klum and his team have collaborated on the music video project Funk for Life, with renowned musician Nils Landgren. This project supports Médecins Sans Frontières
and their work in Kibera
, Kenya
.
. The King of Sweden
has granted Klum his medal of the 8th grade with a blue ribbon for his important contributions as a wildlife photographer. Today, Klum is also a member of the Board of Trustees of WWF
Sweden, a Senior Fellow at Stockholm Resilience Centre
, an IUCN Goodwill Ambassador, and a fellow of National Geographic Society
and The Linnean Society of London. Klum has held a position as a Guest Lecturer at Uppsala University
.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
freelance photographer and film producer in natural history
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
and cultural
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
subjects. He is the son of Swedish academic educator Arne Klum and Ingegärd Klum, née Stefanson. Klum has worked full-time as a freelance photographer since 1986, and as a cinematographer and director on numerous film and television projects since 1994. In an artistic way that is entirely his own, Klum describes and portrays animals, plants, and natural and cultural settings in the form of articles, books, films, lectures and exhibitions.
Klum has had several wildlife documentaries shown on Swedish national TV and has also had his work featured in Wildlife Conservation
Wildlife Conservation Society
The Wildlife Conservation Society based at the Bronx Zoo was founded in 1895 as the New York Zoological Society and currently manages some of wild places around the world, with over 500 field conservation projects in 60 countries, and 200 scientists on staff...
, Audubon
National Audubon Society
The National Audubon Society is an American non-profit environmental organization dedicated to conservation. Incorporated in 1905, Audubon is one of the oldest of such organizations in the world and uses science, education and grassroots advocacy to advance its conservation mission...
, Geo
GEO (magazine)
GEO is a family of educational monthly magazines similar to the National Geographic magazine. It is known for its profound reports, which are accompanied by opulent pictures.The first edition appeared in Germany in 1976...
, National Geographic, Terre Sauvage, Stern, Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. It is one of Europe's largest publications of its kind, with a weekly circulation of more than one million.-Overview:...
and the New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
among others.
In 1997 National Geographic Magazine
National Geographic Magazine
National Geographic, formerly the National Geographic Magazine, is the official journal of the National Geographic Society. It published its first issue in 1888, just nine months after the Society itself was founded...
published Mattias Klum’s photographs for the first time, which made him the first Swede to have his work on the cover, then and still as one of National Geographic’s youngest contributors. Since 1997, he has produced a number of articles and eight cover stories for the magazine, including “Malaysia’s Secret Realm” (August 1997), “Asia’s Last Lions” (June 2001), "Meerkats Stand Tall" (September 2002) and "What Darwin Didn't Know" (February 2009). Klum's photographs have been exhibited in one-man shows at reputable museums and art galleries in the USA, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Malaysia, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Botswana
Botswana
Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
among other countries. Klum has published ten books, four of them available in English: Exploring the Rainforest, Borneo Rainforest, Horse People and Being There.
In 2007 Klum contributed to the starting of a publishing company, Tierra Grande Publishing, the fundraising Terra Magna Foundation and EXPEDITIONSVERIGE.SE (Expedition Sweden), a five-year long environment and inspiration project about Sweden and the Baltic Sea Media Project together with producer Folke Rydén. He has also coached and collaborated with Sweden's Prince Carl Philip
Prince Carl Philip, Duke of Värmland
Prince Carl Philip, Duke of Värmland , is the second child of three children and only son of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden. Born Crown Prince of Sweden, he retained his title and first place in succession for seven months until 1 January 1980...
.
Expeditions
He has undertaken major expeditions to Malaysian BorneoBorneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
and Brunei
Brunei
Brunei , officially the State of Brunei Darussalam or the Nation of Brunei, the Abode of Peace , is a sovereign state located on the north coast of the island of Borneo, in Southeast Asia...
(1988), Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
(1990), Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
and Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
(1991), Malaysian Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
(1995–1996), India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
(1999), Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
(1999), India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
(2000), Malaysia, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
(2001), Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
, Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
and Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
(2002), Malaysia (2003 and 2004), Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
and Antarctica (2005), The Linnaeus Expedition to seven continents (2006 and 2007), Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
(2007) and Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Malaysia (2007 and 2008), Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
(2008), Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
(2009), Malaysia, Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
, Congo DRC, Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
, Botswana
Botswana
Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and Raja Ampat New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
(2010), People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, Cameroon
Cameroon
Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
, Republic of the Congo
Republic of the Congo
The Republic of the Congo , sometimes known locally as Congo-Brazzaville, is a state in Central Africa. It is bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo , the Angolan exclave province of Cabinda, and the Gulf of Guinea.The region was dominated by...
, Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
(2011).
Filmography
- Borneo's Rainforest
- The Brittle Thread
- Search for the Sea Eagle
- The Linnaeus ExpeditionExpedition LinnaeusExpedition Linné is a 2007 documentary film made for the 300th anniversary of the birth of Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist Carl Linnaeus...
- Music video project Funk for Life
- The Coral Eden
- The Testament of Tebaran
Klum has produced documentary films including Borneo’s Rainforest and The Brittle Thread (Asia’s Last Lions) with his wife and colleague Monika Klum and The Linnaeus Expedition
Expedition Linnaeus
Expedition Linné is a 2007 documentary film made for the 300th anniversary of the birth of Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist Carl Linnaeus...
with producer Folke Rydén
Folke Rydén
Folke Rydén, born 17 September 1958 in Uppsala, Sweden is a Swedish journalist and filmmaker.In 1989 he became the US Correspondent for SVT, based in Washington. In 1996 he moved to Hong Kong....
. Klum and his team have collaborated on the music video project Funk for Life, with renowned musician Nils Landgren. This project supports Médecins Sans Frontières
Médecins Sans Frontières
' , or Doctors Without Borders, is a secular humanitarian-aid non-governmental organization best known for its projects in war-torn regions and developing countries facing endemic diseases. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland...
and their work in Kibera
Kibera
Kibera is a division of Nairobi Area, Kenya, and neighbourhood of the city of Nairobi, located from the city centre. Kibera is the largest slum in Nairobi, and the second largest urban slum in Africa...
, Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
.
Awards
Over the years, Mattias Klum has received numerous awards and grants for his work. Uppsala City Council bestowed him with its gold medal for outstanding work from an Uppsala base. The Uppsala County Administration granted him the title of Citizen of the Year in Uppland 2007. In 2008 he was nominated as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic ForumWorld Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum is a Swiss non-profit foundation, based in Cologny, Geneva, best known for its annual meeting in Davos, a mountain resort in Graubünden, in the eastern Alps region of Switzerland....
. The King of Sweden
Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden
Carl XVI Gustaf is the reigning King of Sweden since 15 September 1973, succeeding his grandfather King Gustaf VI Adolf because his father had predeceased him...
has granted Klum his medal of the 8th grade with a blue ribbon for his important contributions as a wildlife photographer. Today, Klum is also a member of the Board of Trustees of WWF
World Wide Fund for Nature
The World Wide Fund for Nature is an international non-governmental organization working on issues regarding the conservation, research and restoration of the environment, formerly named the World Wildlife Fund, which remains its official name in Canada and the United States...
Sweden, a Senior Fellow at Stockholm Resilience Centre
Stockholm Resilience Centre
The Stockholm Resilience Centre is an international research centre at Stockholm University that focuses on the resilience of social-ecological systems....
, an IUCN Goodwill Ambassador, and a fellow of National Geographic Society
National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society , headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical...
and The Linnean Society of London. Klum has held a position as a Guest Lecturer at Uppsala University
Uppsala University
Uppsala University is a research university in Uppsala, Sweden, and is the oldest university in Scandinavia, founded in 1477. It consistently ranks among the best universities in Northern Europe in international rankings and is generally considered one of the most prestigious institutions of...
.