Amanda Horsfield
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwean photographer in search of magic in everyday moments.
With a degree in photojournalism from the University of Rhodesin South Africa. A stint on cruise ships and a photographic adventure on a motorcycle around Vietnam, she hopes to continue exploring, camera in hand.
Photography continues to open the world to her, from the nights under the shining stars, to seeing the beauty in the smallest details of insects and plants.
She met and photographed interesting people on the street and was close to animals in the wild, sometimes too close, once she was even attacked by a hippo.
Masks. Lockdowns. Life on hold. A surreal new reality.
At first, it was faraway. China, Italy, England. It was something horrific, but something you only saw on the news. And then, soon we were living it too, part of the nightmare that hasn’t gone away. Zimbabwe was unprepared. Zororo Makamba became the first reported death. Pictures started emerging of the unequipped Covid hospital –with no ventilators, no water, no protective gear.
And then we were locked down. Everyone’s world’s got smaller. We were living in bubbles, afraid that they would pop. Days became weeks, but the sun kept setting, the moon kept rising. And for me, that’s how I’ve escaped from it all. I look for the beauty in nature, find peace in the rain, joy in the sun. I’m in a world of my own, but it’s filled with insects and flowers and happiness.
Ángel Castillo Perona
Belgium
Ángel Castillo Perona was born in Madrid (1975) With a good eye for photography, he started to grow a strong passion for photography, developing and perfecting techniques, which combined his love of impressionist art and his skill in photography, which does not rely on software manipulation.
He finds inspiration in the beauty of natural elements in urban settings, which is often over-looked and missed by city dwellers rushing past.
Strong, vibrant colours and lighting are common in his work but his techniques provide an intriguing perspective, which blurs the line between photography and impressionist oil painting.
I considered represent what the pandemic means/ meant for me: Being protected and protecting others outside wearing a mask (even in rainy days or visiting a museum where the staff were following the safety guidelines properly) and being at home during lockdown watching life passing by through my window and being protected.
Ansje Visser
Holland
Photography is a form of meditation for me. Strolling around on your own and let you eye lead you is very relaxing and also exciting. Travel, nature, everyday life, underwater world and reflections are my favourite themes.
I organize photo walks, give photography lessons, teambuilding activities and photo coaching. I enjoy it very much when students go from just looking to seeing an interesting image during the lessons. Everything is photographable as long as you get an interesting angle.
I developed a coaching method for people through photography. It is like creative therapy. For example I worked with a group of people with incipient dementia. They were so proud when we ended the photography course with and exhibition.
Writing is my other passion. I am an author of 6 children’s books, 1 poem book, 3 life stories and several photography books. Between 2013 and 2020 I had 5 exhibitions and events of free work. Creativity is essential in my life, a necessity.
Besides my work as a photographer and writer I also work as coordinator for a health care organization in Amsterdam.
I chose a symbolic way to tell what this time means to me. Trees are called the lungs of the earth. The lungs are the parts of our body which are most affected by the corona virus. Isolation • Many people feel very lonely and are literally isolated. Green is the colour of nature, but also of greed, jealousy and is connected with money. Connection • Times will change and we will feel connected again. There is hope. The sky is blue. Blue is the colour of wisdom, loyalty, intelligence and trust. Blue is good for the body and mind. The pictures are taken in the Oosterpark in Amsterdam, a park close to our house. I take a walk in this park every day. So it is an important place for me, especially in corona time. I played with contrast, saturation and double exposure in post production.
Antonio Zarco
Portugal
António is 29 years old. Born in Tomar, Portugal, a small town in size but big in Culture and History. It’s a town full of detail and one you can walk through easily.
Having moved to Lisboa at 15, a much bigger and cosmopolitan city with even bigger history and details, the ever so observing young man developed his Eye for detail through the years.
The variety of scenarios and of people were always fascinating, but most of all, the small and odd aspects that make things and situations unique are where he finds the magic.
Only later in life, already a working man, was he introduced to photography. For about a year he had fun with an analogic 2nd hand Pentax, shooting without any other purpose than to keep kind memories dear to him or details he found singular.
In late 2020, photography started to take a bigger part in his life, when he invested in another camera, this time digital. It was a humbling experience to understand how much about it he didn’t know and the start of a cycle of searching, studying and a lot of wandering through the streets of Lisbon, where he still lives.
António’s choices when pressing the button have everything to do with emotion. It’s a wide range selection, but specific at the same time.
In his collection of photographs one can clearly notice the authors’ concerns, merged with the undeniable eye for the odd, eccentric and unique.
The results are often definitive moments.
Assiatou Ciss
Senegal
Born in Senegal, Aïssatou Ciss is a young photographer who likes to capture the moments of life in her native land.
The universe of Aïssatou Ciss is based on duality; that between the everyday and the instantaneous, between habit and the present moment, between shadow and light.
The arrival of Covid19, is a form of reunion, with my friends, my neighbors and the family. I live on a small island: Ile de Goree, where many slaves had passed through to reach Europe.
We are a small town, and covid19 was an opportunity to meet each other, to help each other and above all to live despite the financial difficulties which depends on tourism, ile de goree, seventy percent of the population makes a living from tourism. During the pandemic we understood that unity was the best way out: Unity is strength. By observing around me I realized that I had to tell this reality through my eyes and that of my neighbors. in our community through photography. I invited my friends, my neighbors to come and tell this reality with me all together we were going to put our words through our eyes. Global Identity and Resistance were the two feelings and looks that could tell about our state of mind during this Covid19. It is the gaze of a generation helpless in the face of a problem whose origin was unknown in the final, but which for the first time brought us together and divided us at the same time. It wasn’t a personal problem, it was everyone’s problem, and we had to tell it all together.
Claudio Gottardo
Italy
I was born in Cerignola in 1983, I started photographing with my father’s polaroid when I was about 10 years old, making photography my passion.
Growing up I nurtured this passion by admiring photographers such as Steve McCurry, Eugene Richards, Ara Guler, entering the world of street photography, attracted by real and unlikely situations, I observe living life moving moment by moment, looking for a moment in tune with my emotional state, making photography a means to show what I have inside, because with photography I can stop a moment forever.
Ekaterina Istomina
Russia
The passion for street photography started as a desire to document my business travels which developed into a continuous search for people, events, plots that capture my attention, living my life with them and around them.
My camera is always with me, it is part of my daily life, as if it were the extension of my arm, my eye on the world.
In Russia we hardly had a true lockdown, but the uncertainty was scary for most of us, so if one could stay at home, they did. By October I already got pretty used to the new routine (remote work, Zoom-meeting with friends), but needed a solid walk around the neighborhood from time to time. One day I decided to wake up early and go for a longer walk than I usually would. I headed to the empty Peter and Paul Fortress. The fortress is beautiful by itself, and I wasn’t expecting any company at 7 A.M. on Sunday. In the end, I was very pleased to see swimmers completing their morning routine and an elderly couple doing the same trick I did – taking an early walk as the best option of living in the city but preserving the social distance. In street photography, I love citizens the most: facial expressions, postures, movements. I see the beauty in sincerity of the moment by observing it at a distance. The Covid took this ritual away from me by locking down people at their homes. My walks became less saturated, but every moment of watching the city life got more valuable than it used to be. That morning was one of the best and totally worth making myself break the habit of staying warm in bed.
Elina Jokipii
Finland
Born in Finland, studied at London College of Printing and Royal College of Art, lives and works in London and Helsinki. Has taught photography and contextual studies for several years and worked as an artist tutor on many community based programmes.
Memory, reliving and re-enactment form an important part of my personal visual practice. I like to explore and retell stories that have been passed down, giving importance to events that I feel a connection to through the experience of others.
The diptych of images in Play continued act as a very personal visual lamentation of the experiences lost during the time of the pandemic, when the world at times has diminished to a view through a dirty window: the performances unseen, the tickets never used, the important dates in the calendar that never happened; the way life has been reduced to long stares out of my back window imagining what an anticipated experience might have been. Yet life continues, and my children have continued to grow and play and I still feel gratitude in being able to witness this miracle although from more of a distance than before – through this dirty window.
Facundo Rosales
Argentina
Although I was born and raised in Argentina, I have now lived half of my life in Europe, including Spain, England and now Germany.
My background is graphic/web design although I have always had a passion for art and photography. My creative focus has been on street photography for about a year.
The pictures were taken around the streets of Berlin between February 2020 and April 2021 which marks a year anniversary since all started. They were captured in particularly quiet and silent moments when none else was around. My regular photo walks have had a quite different atmosphere since the pandemic and I’ve been trying to capture the feeling of loneliness of solo walkers. Absence of human interaction, closed shop windows and cafes, a woman staring at empty chairs inside a shop; a man pacing back and forth under a bridge as if waiting for something; they looked like walking aimlessly, unable to enter, just passing by.
Gabriele Zago
Italy
Gabriele Zago is an art director and photographer who has always been fascinated by the visual arts, these aspects have always inspired him and allow him to experiment with new communication languages through his works.
His research focuses on documenting through images ethnic groups, territories and populations threatened today by progress and globalization, using post-production graphic expedients that clearly show, accentuated and almost exaggerated the socio-political processes that are often not visible.
These are not just photographs, but shots that clearly show everyone a process of modification, distortion and alienation suffered by the subjects portrayed and their territory.
He has exhibited his projects in solo and group exhibitions, in Italy and abroad.
Each of the two photos comes from the same point of view, that is the windows of my house. However, the window does not represent an opening towards the outside, rather it becomes a filter towards the outside. The windows of our homes during the pandemic period became one of the few contacts to the outside world, but just as they helped us to maintain a connection with reality, at the same time they showed us what was happening out there; deserted streets, ambulances, processions of hearses. The curtain hides the transparency of the glass, screens, alters the perception we have of reality and distorts what is outside our home, our refuge. It is thanks to this filter that my mind feels reassured, there is a distance between me and the world out there, I can only see what the shadows, reflections and glows are able to return. The lights and shadows projected become the very scan of time that passes and for a few moments I can imagine a reality different from the one I fear.
Jerfareza Daviano
Indonesia
Jerfareza is an Indonesian photographer based in Sendai, Japan.
Originally a landscape lover, lately he’s been doing a lot of work in street photography capturing moments from the beautiful yet relatively unknown city of Sendai.
He is a freelance photographer specializing in street and landscape although I also dabble in various fields of photography out of curiosity or due to work demands. I spent most of my adult years away from my homeland and currently residing in Japan, a country which I consider to be very beautiful with its unparalleled mix of nature and culture.
Lenny Ruiz
Argentina
I started my formal studies in the Diploma of Techniques and Photographic Arts of Avecofa Caracas (2017), I obtained the Diploma in Cinematography of the National Film School of Caracas (2019).
I have been taking photos for 7 years since I bought my first DSLR, photography has become a very important part of my life ever since. I made a collection of photographs in Latin American cities, among which are; Caracas, Havana, Buenos Aires, Mendoza and Santiago de Chile which I intend to expand in the short term with others.
I love urban architecture and everything it can offer, stay. More than a message, what I want is to create atmospheres, an emotional tension, to give importance to the space that surrounds an element through tones, colors, lights and shadows, this is what I like to convey through my photos.
I want to be able to connect the world of abstraction to the real through the anchors of our reality, a passage between our world and fantasy.
When the pandemic came to life in Argentina, I only had 5 months living here, arrived as a migrant from my native country, Venezuela, I felt the need to go out and take pictures in the street since it is my natural environment. It has been more than a year since that and thank God I have not gotten sick and I was able to witness how gradually life has continued around me despite all the negative that the closure of so many businesses, companies and institutions can produce in a society. Life must go on and life is on the street, I must go out for it.
Resa Eko Yuliyanto
Japan
Photography is my hobby and on almost every trip I always have a camera in my hand or backpack.
I am Indonesian and I happen to work in Japan and my hobby is channeled here because there are many beautiful places to explore while capturing every moment.
My photographs are multiple of images because in the same there are many other facets. I compose the photo with particular cuts, I like it more when I photograph old buildings and crowds in public.
I hope that if I have money I can travel the world and make my own story book.
The world is not good. With each passing day it became harder and harder as the earth shrouded in clouds. From dark still dark. Only the hand of God can strengthen. The pandemic has completely changed my view of all good conditions from the little things, to the big things, in every aspect of life. The pandemic undoubtedly makes all the old habits obsolete now, the new habits need to adapt to this new era. A pandemic forces everyone to limit their expression in public. A pandemic makes everyone not free to express their joy, disappointment, happiness and sadness because they are blocked by a thick wall called “Mask”.
Tamara Torres
USA (New York)
Tamara Torres is an international visual artist producing photographs that are correlated to intimate expositions. Centered around complex analyses of the hard truths and fractured world for feminism, social injustices, and women’s empowerment.
Torre’s collages are images, text, symbols, that explore the split nature of cultural identity, referencing her Afro-Latina ancestry, fashion, and contemporary politics. The abstract paintings evolved into standalone creations; renditions of landscapes navigated by her signature “shadow men.”
Creating imaginary worlds that give you the sense to swim in them and feel an individual spiritual connection. Torres has exhibited her art in New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, London, Edinburgh, and Rome.
During the Covid-19 lockdown, it was an emotional and compelling time to self-reflect reintroducing my first love of photography back to myself. Taking this time to create photographs that had a connection to the inner and outer ideals of self without the fear of criticism, judgment, or commercialized expectations. Platanos was a tribute to young mothers who used the resources they had to provide for their children. Platanos are affordable bananas used in various recipes with Caribbean cuisine. Dirty Minds what goes on in your mind with no one is around, listening, with the truth is an option. This photograph is for the writers that have revealed the unspoken.
Vincent Lambert
France
Vincent Lambert, 21 years old and of French nationality, I am passionate about the world of the image since my youngest age.
My school curriculum was entirely dedicated to photography and audiovisual practice.
Having finished my schooling for 2 years, I organized my free time in order to establish a real curiosity and experimentation of a professional life in the field of the image.
Since then I have managed to acquire a practice and a look at my profession.
After several years of discovery and practice. Today, I am marking a real evolution and an important recognition in a career that has only just begun.
This confinement was a real revelation in my work. Indeed, I wanted to take advantage of my free time to experiment with the photo-editing technique. I found a real link between my achievements and the current global situation related to COVID-19 that allows me to express a certain madness in the realization of my montages. This photographic technique is endowed with a great diversity whose objective is to visually show the state of mind of a person during the confinement of COVID-19. Swimming pool • Being passionate about water sports, this realization aims to evoke a significant lack in the practice of leisure. The minimalist aspect of the photo allows you to immerse yourself in an imagination, a dream caused by the remoteness of our daily activities. Through the Windows • Through this realization I wanted to reproduce the feeling of confinement that one can feel during a confinement. This fluorescent red frame represents the barrier not to be crossed. The one that separates us from the outside world hidden by a brick wall.
