We are delighted that two of our books in the category of conceptual-artistic photobooks were awarded silver and bronze at the German Photobook Prize.
Katerina Belkina masterfully weaves together the boundaries between photography and painting in her works, taking viewers on a fascinating journey of discovery through her creative fusion. *My Work Is My Personal Theatre* , the impressive photo book, presents for the first time her creative period from 2006 to 2019. In this first book by the artist, the images invite readers to explore the unique connection between photographic techniques and the expressive forms of visual art.
The focus of her work is always the human being, most often the woman. Belkina herself assumes a triple role: she is subject, director, and visual artist all at once. Based on feminist principles, Belkina depicts everyday life from a female perspective, portraying women not as objects, but primarily as energy. In her series "Not a Man's World," she presents herself confidently, smoking a pipe and with a raised index finger. The artist does not intend to denounce, but rather seeks answers to the question: Who is she as a woman, an artist, a mother, or as a member of society?
The series "Of Potato Roses and Burning Treetops" by Annemie Martin and Jana Kießer reflects the altered everyday life during the Corona pandemic in the form of a photographic dialogue with personal texts. Mostly 800 kilometers apart – Annemie spent a large part of the pandemic on an island in Lake Constance, Jana in Berlin – the two photographers conducted this dialogue for more than a year.
How are people experiencing the pandemic in the countryside, and how in the city? Annemie Martin and Jana Kießer have found images to capture this ongoing state of emergency: In associative, poetic photographs, they show each other their surroundings; their radius of movement has shrunk and is observed closely. Personal diary entries offer insights into inner monologues. Fleeting thoughts, memories, and dreams provide readers with surfaces for projection and repeatedly engage with the current state of the pandemic—fears for the future, loneliness, blows of fate—how does this time affect their private lives?
