IN THE MOOD FOR BEAUTY Georg Reiter is always in search of symmetrical shapes, both in architecture and in landscape, and in all of it, the mood of the scene. IN THE MOOD FOR BEAUTY July 28, 2020 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Georg Reiter INTERVIEW Karin Svadlenak Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE Born in Salzburg, Austria, photographer Georg Reiter now lives in Vienna. His preferred genres are architecture and landscape photography, but he also does some lovely still life photography. He is always in search of symmetrical shapes, both in architecture and in landscape, and in all of it the mood of a scene is important to him. Even when photographing street scenes, his photographs have a highly aesthetic and yet natural feel. He works with contrast and light to bring out special features or moods. Nowadays he likes to explore a setting without a camera before returning to it to take the picture he has envisioned in his mind. “I am strolling around and always looking for moody scenes. I am not interested in capturing just a landscape, cityscape or architecture...I want to capture the mood surrounding that landscape or architecture.” IN CONVERSATION WITH GEORG REITER THE PICTORIAL LIST: Georg, can you tell us when you started getting interested in photography? GEORG REITER: It was in school, when I was 14 years old. We could decide between stenography and photography. I chose photography, as that was what I really wanted to do. TPL: Has your style of photographing changed since you first started? GR: Yes, my style, and my kind of post-processing, all have changed since I started. In my early years of photographing, with my first analog camera, I used a lot of filters, especially red and yellow to make the photos more dramatic, with hard contrasts. And I just went out and took pictures. Now I go out first without a camera to look for a motive, and come back well prepared to take a photo according to my idea. TPL: Where is your favourite place to photograph? GR: I really like the "Weinviertel"*, especially in the winter, when there is little snow. There are small hills, some tree rows for wind protection, and very small villages with old houses. *a wine growing region in lower Austria TPL: Do you have any favourite artists or photographers you would like to share with us, and the reason for their significance? GR: Michael Kenna from Great Britain. His long term exposures, his special style has influenced me the most. And there is one painter I really like, Lucian Freud. When I do portrait photography, it is his kind of style of portraits that influence me. TPL: Do you think equipment is important in achieving your vision in your photography? What would you say to someone else just starting out? GR: Technical equipment is not so important to me, but I already love my wide angle lens. The most important feature for me is that the camera can be used in manual mode, so that I can determine how the photo will look. Now I go out first without a camera to look for a motive, and come back well prepared to take a photo according to my idea. TPL: What have been the positives and negatives of Instagram regarding your photography? GR: Instagram is important for me, because I see photos from very creative people. Some of these photos have influenced my style in the last years. The negative side of social media, not only Instagram, is the time you spend on it. TPL: Have you ever been involved in the artistic world before photography? GR: Yes, the parents of some of my friends who grew up with me were writers, and some of these friends went to art school. I graduated from Oskar Kokoschka´s "Schule des Sehens" (School of Seeing). TPL: Are there any special projects you are currently working on? GR: Yes, I am currently working on a project about the "Flaktürme von Wien"(flak towers of Vienna). TPL: If I wasn't photographing what would I be doing?... GR: I really don't know, I never thought about it. I have always been taking photos. GEORG REITER Read CYCLING CUBA by Georg Behance >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.

OUT OF THE DARKNESS Through self portraiture Abbie Briggs has truly found herself. Photography has become a healing creative outlet for her. OUT OF THE DARKNESS April 26, 2020 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Abbie Briggs INTERVIEW Melanie Meggs Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE Abbie Briggs has been struggling with mental health issues for most of her life, but when she got her first digital camera a few years ago, she found an unexpected source of solace. Through self-portraiture, Abbie has found her own healing creative outlet and come to terms with the struggles of her past. Photography has had a positive impact on Abbie's mental health, providing her with a means of self-expression and allowing her to explore her identity in a unique and meaningful way, enabling her to find a sense of peace and purpose. Join us as we explore Abbie’s journey in her pursuit of healing through the power of photography. “Evolve or die.” A simple reminder for me to keep moving and never stop growing. I also like it because it reminds me of Lily Tomlin...and Lily Tomlin always makes me happy. I first saw the phrase on a shirt she was wearing in a portrait by Norman Seeff. IN CONVERSATION WITH ABBIE BRIGGS THE PICTORIAL LIST: Abbie, please tell us when you started getting interested in photography? ABBIE BRIGGS: Even though I've only honored it more recently, I've been drawn to photography since I was little. Reflecting back I can see that it was something always trying to grab hold of me but I just never let it. So life went on and I hit some hard times and fell into a pretty deep depression. I was basically treading water until about the end of 2017 when a DSLR fell into my lap and I started getting to know it. Finally answering the call that had been trying to get my attention my whole life really helped in pulling me out of the darkness. I haven't looked back since. TPL: Where do you find your inspiration? AB: Nature, poetry, music, other artists and photographers. TPL: Do you have any favourite artists or photographers you would like to share with us, and the reason for their significance? AB: I'm a big fan of Julia Margaret Cameron and the way she brought stories and poems to life in her portraits. I also adore the work of Georgia O'Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz. Both in their own right as artists but especially with what they created together. Anna Gaskell - especially her Turns Gravity series - gives me life every time I revisit. And I have to mention Bob Dylan and Patti Smith even though they aren't known for their photography. Their influence has played a big role in making me who I am and that makes my art what it is. So, yeah, credit where credit's due and all that. TPL: Has your style of photographing changed since you first started? AB: Absolutely. It takes time to find your style, I think. I also believe it's something that can keep evolving. Growth is good. TPL: Where is your favourite place to photograph? AB: My little home studio. It's my safe space for creating self portraits. But also anywhere out in nature -- the woods, botanical gardens or the wildflower garden that grows at a local park. Finally answering the call that had been trying to get my attention my whole life really helped in pulling me out of the darkness. I haven't looked back since. TPL: Do you think equipment is important in achieving your vision in your photography? What would you say to someone just starting out? AB: I am definitely not a "gear person". Personally, I'm most fulfilled by challenging myself to get creative with what I've got. When I was first starting I was blinded by the promise of new equipment but realized that giving into that wasn't necessarily helping me create anything I loved. My focus was on what I thought I needed to do it better. So I decided to simplify. I chose just one of my lenses (nifty fifty was the winner) and shot with that exclusively for about a year. During that year I focused more on studying different genres and other photographers. It really opened me up creatively. It helped me find direction for the art I wanted to create. I do have a couple other lenses that I create with, as well as some filters and stuff for when I just need to mix it up a bit (because that's good for creativity too) but these days I'm only drawn to something new when I'm feeling sufficiently ready to grow my portrait setup in some way. TPL: What characteristics do you think you need to become a good photographer? What’s your tips or advice for someone in your genre? AB: I think being a good observer, having a good eye goes a long way. Keeping an open mind and a willingness to keep learning have definitely helped me grow as an artist. If you're into self portraiture I'd say authenticity is key. Stay true to yourself, trust yourself. Think through your ideas and get in touch with your emotions. Then tell your story. TPL: Have you ever been involved in the artistic world before photography? AB: I've always loved creating but it's usually just for myself. Collage is something I've dabbled in for years and I play with paint once in a while. Nothing professional though. TPL: Are there any special projects you are currently working on that you would like to let everyone know about? AB: I've got some bigger ideas brewing. That's all I'll say for now. TPL: "If I wasn't photographing I like to be... AB: I love to be outside but I always have my camera when I'm outside so… reading, writing, baking, or watching something nerdy or true crime related." VIEW ABBIE'S PORTFOLIO Abbie's instagram >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.

ENROUTE TO THE PINES To celebrate Pride month, Robert Sherman shares his documentary series about drag queens celebrating the 'Invasion of the Pines' in Long Island. ENROUTE TO THE PINES June 2, 2021 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Robert Sherman INTERVIEW Karin Svadlenak Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE Robert Sherman, born in Chicago, but now based in New York City, is both a photographer and a musician and composer. He developed a pure passion for the art of photography and ended up becoming the staff photographer for the Fire Island newspaper. Of late he has also become a columnist for them and manages their social media account. To celebrate Pride month, as a double-feature with our friends at Spectaculum Magazine, we have asked Robert to share some photos from his documentary series about drag queens celebrating the INVASION OF THE PINES in Long Island, part of the annual Pride month events. “I was sent on assignment four years ago and fell in love with the event. The energy of the pre-party scene in Cherry Grove, having full access with press pass to the preparations and behind the scenes “Jamboree”, and being allowed on the Queen’s Boat enroute to The Pines for the red carpet pageant was exhilarating beyond my wildest photographic and emotional dreams.” IN CONVERSATION WITH ROBERT SHERMAN THE PICTORIAL LIST: Robert please tell us about yourself. Talk to us about your work and life in New York city. When and did you become interested in photography? ROBERT SHERMAN: I was born on the south side of Chicago, but moved to Northern California when I was 12, so the west coast really does feel like my cultural roots and San Francisco my hometown. But I came to Boston for my bachelor’s degree in music and then to NYC to get my masters degree at The Manhattan School of Music. I then stayed in New York for 35 years now, so I definitely feel like a full-blown New Yorker. I freelanced as a pianist and composer for years in NYC and then landed a full time job teaching music at The Calhoun School on the upper west side. I let go of teaching after 10 years and found myself obsessively fascinated with photography, almost as if it were a new musical instrument speaking to a lifetime spent in that pursuit. My wife got tired of seeing me using my iPhone so much, so she bought me a birthday present of a beautiful Sony mirrorless, my first real camera. Three years studying the basics, as well as taking master classes in the philosophy and grammar of photography at the International School of Photography brought me to a place where I felt I could follow and realize my total immersion in this new passion, and, in short, found myself continuing incessantly to photograph everything in sight that engaged me. I now consider myself a full time freelance street photographer, portrait photographer, and photographer in general. Four years ago I was offered a job as staff photographer for the Fire Island News, a newspaper based in Long Island, NY, and jumped at the opportunity to work as a photojournalist, as well. I am now also the editor of their Instafeed, and a regularly contributing columnist for the paper. TPL: It is Pride Month, and we have scheduled your feature of the Invasion of the Pines drag event in celebration of this special month. How did you get involved in this event? RS: I was sent on assignment four years ago and fell in love with the event. The energy of the pre-party scene in Cherry Grove, having full access with press pass to the preparations and behind the scenes “Jamboree”, and being allowed on the Queen’s Boat enroute to The Pines for the red carpet pageant was exhilarating beyond my wildest photographic and emotional dreams. Below deck I could find quiet moments of introspection and tender friendships, isolation, restrained nervousness and excitement, raw enthusiasm for the explosive moments to come upon landing at the next town over, The Pines, the exiting down the ramp and onto the red carpet for the pageantry and the fashion gala in front of thousands of spectators, revelers, supporters and beautiful people of like minds. I have covered two such events so far (Covid having blocked last year), the third coming up this July 4, and have never been able to shoot less than 1,500 photographs each time. I narrow them down to around 50, and from that, the paper chooses about 10 shots for publication. The rest are for me and my utter adoration of the process. It is my absolute favorite assignment of the year. TPL: What do you find especially interesting about the event in particular, and about drag in general? RS: In spite of the historical and current social hardships the LGBTQ community faces, there is a level of 'celebration of self' that is unmatched in most other groups or circumstances I’ve witnessed. Not unlike the amazing beauty of the carnival and birthplace of the incredibly intoxicating Samba music in Brazil —a country rife with suffering and pain— somehow finding its way toward the purest forms of all-encompassing celebration, this Invasion event is a true and total immersion into ecstatic revelations of how beautiful each and every one of us are, as we are; unfiltered and true to ourselves. I find myself enthralled by how being so utterly convinced of one’s beauty within makes each and every participant the most exquisite presence on earth. TPL: Are there any other events that celebrate Pride that you would recommend for photographers interested in the subject? RS: In spite of its challenges as a photographer and perhaps an outsider, with the crowds and crowd blockades, the NYC Pride March remains the most fantastic and enormous event of its kind. All of it, wherever you go to celebrate Pride Month, one will find a plethora of pure celebration that is impossible to not want to capture in image, narrative, and emotive content. TPL: In general regarding your photography, where do you find your inspiration to create? RS: I am not finding myself able to put my work in any particular "record bin". I can’t categorize nor “brand” myself. I simply must photograph what’s in front of me, that which engages me. I feel like I literally fall in love for that fraction of a second in which this endeavor eventuates. TPL: What do you want people to remember about your photography? RS: The images themselves. I don’t wish to be seen in the photograph. If anything, perhaps there’s a common thread of continuity in the part of me that sees and captures what’s in the image. But I strive to have the pieces speak for themselves. This Invasion event is a true and total immersion into ecstatic revelations of how beautiful each and every one of us are, as we are; unfiltered and true to ourselves. TPL: Do you have any favourite artists or photographers you would like to share with us? RS: Miles Davis, Elliott Erwitt, Irving Penn, Bill Evans, William Eggleston, Thelonious Monk, Diane Arbus, Betty Carter, Dorothea Lange, João Gilberto, Helmut Newton, John Coltrane, Chehalis Hegner, Hyuna Park... don’t get me started. The list is too long. TPL: Do you have a favourite place to photograph? RS: New York City is by far the most amazing place to simply walk around with camera in hand. So many colors, walks of life, people who are in their own world, and all the many who wish to be seen, who want to be photographed. That reminds me, one more quick one for the previous list: Bill Cunningham, the great fashion photographer on the streets of New York with his bike and camera simply riding around and capturing all the best of the best moments. TPL: When you take pictures, do you usually have a concept in mind of what you want to shoot, or do you let the images just "come to you", or is it both? Please describe your process. RS: I think it’s neither, unless I’m in a more formal portrait project setting in which I am looking for very specific ideas. I think I try to “go to the images” and not wait to let them “come to me”. I move a lot. As in jazz improvisation, where there is a requirement of super-focus, studied instinct, and practiced intuition that asks you to anticipate the next 'inevitable' note, the same applies in photography: to see the shot ahead of time and move toward it with a sense of composition, decisive moment, expression, interaction, narrative, or simply the 'stealing of beauty'. Because I feel that stories and beauty are everywhere and in everyone. You just have to look for, and reach out toward them. TPL: Does the equipment you use help you in achieving your vision in your photography? What camera do you use? Do you have a preferred lens/focal length? RS: I’ve stuck with Sony, and it has done everything I need and want with complete satisfaction. I’ve upgraded two times since my first camera, following my evolving needs. And now sit happily with the mark IV. I have nine lenses for various settings: 200-600mm for surf photography, wildlife, and nature, I prefer the 135mm f1.8 for portrait work, as a little compression always helps to further beautify faces, or my zeiss batis 85mm if I want more of the environment around the subject. For street I go in all directions, mostly 50mm, but I also play with compression and discretion on my 70-300mm, or the circus act warping of my 12-24mm, I have a 90mm and a 32mm macro. And my 24-70mm, although burdensome and at times off-putting for the people around me, is a beautiful street photography solution, as it sometimes forces the issue of real engagement with the subject in the moment. TPL: Are there any special projects you are currently working on that you would like to let everyone know about? What are some of your goals as an artist or photographer? Where do you hope to see yourself in five years? RS: I have a solo show offered to me by the Ocean Beach Historical Society, during its centennial celebration of the city, opening on July 16 on Fire Island, NY, entitled 'Here, There, and Back Again'. It will be a collection of individual photographs, triptychs, portraits, from “home” on Fire Island, and New York City, and abroad in Italy and Southern Spain, from street photography to character studies to the aforementioned Pride Invasion in brief series from below deck of the Queen’s Boat to the red carpet, a few nature shots, as well as honoring my lifetime passion for surfing in some local gems off the shores of life on Fire Island. Beyond that, the next project will certainly be realized one way or another, I have no doubt. My aspirations are to keep shooting what I find fascinating, and presenting both in series, as well as the seemingly fresh focus on the stand alone 'individual photograph'. Of course I want to sell and make museum level works and show in important galleries everywhere. But most of all, at this point in my life I just want to tell stories, write “songs” with my camera, no, with my eye and heart, and continue to see all that surrounds me and find the moments I wish to capture and share with anyone who wants to join me in it all. I just want to keep falling in love. TPL: "When I am not out photographing, I (like to)… RS: Edit photographs and print them for true indulgence of their actual value in my life, play my 1924 Steinway Grand and my 1965 Hammond B3 organ for myself at home, surf, spend time with my grown children and my beautiful wife, and eat ice cream." VIEW ROBERT'S PORTFOLIO INVASION OF THE PINES on Spectaculum Magazine >>> Instagram >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.

CONSTRUCTED RIBBON LANDSCAPES Painting with her camera lets abstract photographer and textile designer Alex Rutherford combine her two passions to capture her world. CONSTRUCTED RIBBON LANDSCAPES October 20, 2021 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Alex Rutherford INTERVIEW Melanie Meggs Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE Welcome to the captivating world of abstract photographer Alexandra Rutherford! Alexandra is a textile designer with a passion for capturing the beauty of the world around her through her unique lens. She has channeled her expertise in textiles into a creative art form, painting with her camera to create stunning abstract photographs. In this interview, we explore Alexandra's series of photographs entitled 'Constructed Ribbon Landscapes', which take the use of texture, shape and form to capture abstract representations of the world. Join us as we dive into the fascinating work of Alexandra Rutherford, and get inspired by her ephemeral moments of beauty and wonder. “My series 'Constructed Ribbon Landscapes' was a project I started in 2019, however, with the events of 2020 meaning that most of us were confined to our homes I decided to revisit it. By experimenting with different lighting and a compilation of ICM (Intentional Camera Movement) and multiple exposure I created impressions of landscapes, beaches and seascapes using ribbons in a variety of textures, patterns, colours and opacity. In my head I had been all over the world, seen beautiful sunrises, glorious mountain vistas, glistening lakes, and lush green valleys but I hadn’t actually left my house! I hope to spark that imagination in other people with these images.” IN CONVERSATION WITH ALEX RUTHERFORD THE PICTORIAL LIST: Alex please tell us about yourself. ALEX RUTHERFORD: I was born in Merseyside, United Kingdom but spent my early years in rural Lancashire before returning to Merseyside to start senior school. My photographic/artistic journey started at technical college where I completed an Art Foundation course before moving to London to study for my degree in Constructed Textile Design at Hornsey College of Art. On completion of my degree course I worked in Interior Design (textiles) before starting my own knitwear company, this led me into the retail buying field where I worked for major fashion houses before taking time out to bring up our two children. TPL: What was that moment that sparked your interest to pursue photography? AR: My Foundation Art course gave me the opportunity to experiment in all aspects of art and design with advice and guidance from the most fantastic and dedicated teachers in the field. At this stage my photography was used to collect reference and inspiration rather than as an end result in itself. I would use a well worn and slightly battered Pentax, spend hours processing film in the darkroom and then have that magical moment of the image coming to life on paper! Brickwork, ironwork and dockland buildings were my main subjects as they gave me textures and and repeat patterns to use in my designs. It was when I picked up my husbands Nikon 5100 some years later that my passion for photography really took hold. I realised that digital processing opened up a whole world of new opportunities to explore and experiment with but also just how much camera equipment had advanced. After going back to basics (by completing the course “A Year with My Camera", with the fantastic Emma Davies) and then expanding that with various online/YouTube tutorials I gained more confidence in testing the boundaries of just what could be achieved. I also joined the online community SheClicks, this is a group of female photographers who advise, support, encourage and inspire each other. TPL: What does photography mean to you? How would you describe your photography style? AR: I describe my work as 'textured modern abstract'. I love bringing my textile eye into the field of photography to produce my interpretation of modern artwork rather than straight documentation. We can use a camera to produce images which may not be seen as conventional, we can really push the boundaries. I call it 'camera painting'. TPL: Artists often build up and experiment towards a method of working. Has your imagery become more abstract over time, or did you know exactly what you wanted from the beginning? What has been the inspiration for your work? AR: When I restarted my photography journey I was drawn to taking close ups of plants in an abstract fashion. The architectural structure of a leaf such as a Hosta with the rain forming droplets in the rivets, or a group of palm leaves against a dark moody sky. As I progressed my work became more abstract with the addition of ICM adding a further textural dimension which started with using Bamboo as the subject matter, I then moved on to those glorious colourful plants…Dahlias. TPL: Do you have any favourite artists or photographers you would like to share with us, and the reason for their significance? AR: The textile designer Zandra Rhodes has always been a real inspiration for me. I chose to go into textile design originally having seen her fabulous creations and, more recently (2019), visited her exhibition at the Fashion and Textile Museum in Bermondsey, London. Her vibrancy and clever use of scale and colour are something I regularly refer to in photography. Bridget Riley’s optical illusions and the bold unique graphics and typography of the Bauhaus movement are also images that I keep going back to, and Studio Drift, based in Amsterdam. I describe my work as 'textured modern abstract'. I love bringing my textile eye into the field of photography to produce my interpretation of modern artwork rather than straight documentation. TPL: Does the equipment you use help you in achieving your vision in your photography? What camera do you use? Do you have a preferred lens/focal length? Talk to us about how you paint with your camera? AR: My Nikon 5100 and 5200 DSLR are excellent for ICM and multiple exposure photography all of which I do in camera.They are quite chunky and heavy beasts to carry around but they work well for me. I have just three Nikon lenses but my most used and most versatile is the Nikon DX 18-105mm. My monopod is also an essential piece of equipment. I refer to my style of photography as “camera painting” as I use various techniques as described above to create an artistic interpretation of what I see in front of me. I like the viewer to think “what is it?” as they then take time to study the image more closely. TPL: Do you spend a lot of time editing? What is your process? AR: Most of my images are created in camera but I do use Lightroom to fine tune. TPL: What are some of your goals as an artist/photographer? Where do you hope to see yourself in five years? AR: In the future I would like to work with interior designers on theme projects possibly for restaurants, hotels or other commercial enterprises creating photo art for walls. I would also like an exhibition in a London gallery. TPL: Are there any projects you are currently working on that you would like to let everyone know about? AR: My current project is working on a set of images influenced by the Pop Art movement, bold and bright…watch this space. TPL: "When I am not out photographing, I (like to)… AR: I love my photography and get totally immersed in the whole process, however, my time out is visiting galleries such as the V&A, Tate Liverpool and Tate Modern, special time coming together to walk the dog with the family, cycling the Thames Towpath and growing exotic chillies." VIEW ALEX'S PORTFOLIO Instagram >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.

RESONANCE OF HER REALISM Lana Eileen's images fuses abstract elements with fine details, combining seemingly disparate fragments to evoke a sense of magic realism. RESONANCE OF HER REALISM July 5, 2021 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Lana Eileen INTERVIEW Melanie Meggs Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE The power of art lies in its ability to evoke emotion and transcend rational thought. Lana Eileen is an artist who embraces this mystery and uses her art to create an ethereal world of beauty and enchantment, drawing inspiration from her own experiences to create unique works of art. Currently a student of the School of Creative Arts and Media in Tasmania, Eileen has explored far and wide in search of creative inspiration, from artist residencies in remote Iceland and the island of Hrísy near the Arctic Circle, to New Zealand. Her works combine abstract elements with fine details to create a sense of surrealism, often employing self-portraiture as a means of expressing her inner thoughts and feelings. Through her photography, Eileen invites us to explore the intangible realm of our own minds, inspiring us to look beyond the obvious and discover something new about ourselves and our world. “There’s a physicality to self-portraiture that I love. It feels performative, almost like dancing, and there is a lot of movement involved. I love self-portraiture because it has an intimacy to it, and it is inherently personal.” IN CONVERSATION WITH LANA EILEEN THE PICTORIAL LIST: Lana please tell us about yourself. You are also a musician, tell us a bit about that. What was your journey into photography? LANA EILEEN: I was born in Australia, and I have just moved back here after having lived in New Zealand for a long time. I am now based in Tasmania, which is where I lived when I was very young. Working as a musician is what I have been doing for the majority of my life. When I started modelling for professional photographers on press shots for my music, I became interested in being a photographer myself. In the years since then, I’ve been continually experimenting, but it’s only recently that I’ve become very passionate about photography and started to take it seriously. TPL: Much of your work is self-portraiture. Is the process of photographing yourself different to that of photographing other people? Do you have a process of preparation? LE: It’s different in the sense that photographing other people allows for more technical control, whereas self-portraiture can sometimes be a gamble. But there’s a physicality to self-portraiture that I love. It feels performative, almost like dancing, and there is a lot of movement involved. I love self-portraiture because it has an intimacy to it, and it is inherently personal. TPL: Your photographs have a romantic aesthetic mixed with a tangible darkness that has a strong presence to nature. How would you describe your work and how do you choose your themes and communicate this to the viewer? LE: I am interested in moments that capture a sense of intimacy, focusing on gestures, movement, physical form. I love photographing hands, or faces partially obscured. Diane Arbus said a photograph is a secret about a secret — the more it tells you, the less you know — and that quote reflects how I feel about my work. I appreciate the connection between the human body and the natural landscape, investigating our place in the world and how we are inextricably tied to the earth, and I am always seeking to explore that concept. TPL: In 2019, you undertook an artist residency in remote Iceland. Tell us more about how this came about, what was it like, and what did you take away from this experience? LE: I had been wanting to complete a residency in Iceland for many years, as I was aware of several programs operating there, and in 2019 I finally applied and was accepted. I spent a month living in a tiny village in a remote corner of east Iceland, covered in snow, working at the studio each day. It was sometimes difficult, as the environment was quite raw and isolating, but I also loved it and found it to be life changing. There were artists from all over the world working there at the same time. I would love to return one day. TPL: Where has been your most favourite place to photograph? LE: I recently took a series of photographs in a lake in rural Australia just before sunset for my series ‘The Language of Water’, where I walked out into the water, and it was one of those special shoots when everything is just right in terms of lighting and atmosphere. That was definitely one of my favourite moments. I also love experimenting, taking self-portraits underwater or under glass. I appreciate the connection between the human body and the natural landscape, investigating our place in the world and how we are inextricably tied to the earth, and I am always seeking to explore that concept. TPL: Do you have any favourite artists or photographers you would like to share with us? LE: Julia Margaret Cameron, Diane Arbus, Francesca Woodman. Polish photographer Laura Makabresku is also a very big influence on my work. TPL: Does the equipment you use help you in achieving your vision in your photography? What camera do you use? Do you have a preferred lens/focal length? LE: As someone who is more creatively driven than technically minded, the equipment I use feels secondary to things like concept and atmosphere, but it’s also undeniable that the type of camera I shoot with has a big impact on the result. Currently I am using a Canon 600D, a Canon 5D MK III, and a Nikon F80. I am very excited by the possibilities associated with using film, and that’s my focus at the moment. TPL: What are some of your goals as an artist or photographer? Where do you hope to see yourself in five years? LE: I want to keep exhibiting my work, publish a photo book, and learn as much as possible. I plan to move to Europe when I graduate, and exhibit and work over there. I can see photography gaining more prominence in my work as an artist in the years to come. TPL: Are there any special projects you are currently working on that you would like to let everyone know about? LE: I am busy creating work for an exhibition at Black Cat Gallery in Melbourne in early 2022 that expands on my series ‘The Language of Water’, as well as a smaller exhibition of my photography at Parlour Gallery in Hobart this September, and I am also directing a lot of my focus towards shooting on film. TPL: When I am not out photographing, I (like to)… LE: Write music for my upcoming album, sing, play the piano and other instruments, perform at shows, make handmade jewellery and herbal skincare, read, cook, try to write a novel, go on road trips, or simply enjoy being out in nature." VIEW LANA'S PORTFOLIO Website >>> Instagram >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.

CROSSING THE AVENUE Get ready to be transported by the street photography of Juan Sostre. His mastery of technique and ability to observe the world around him, allows us to experience the street in a whole different light. CROSSING THE AVENUE May 5, 2023 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Juan Sostre INTERVIEW Bill Lacey Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE Driven by passion, hunting for the right light, the right expression, the right pose…photographer Juan Sostre’s work is at once recognizable. Bold, in your face, sometimes pretty, sometimes anything but. Filled with boundless energy on the street, he is both a fly on the wall and a bulldog with a flash. Walking with Juan on the street is both exciting and informative. He’s a walking masterclass of street technique. He shoots without hesitation where others might. Raw, edgy, in black and white or color, Juan's street portraits unearth something below the surface that most fail to capture. Juan is also an amazing curator of street photography. His AVENUE magazine features some of the best street photographers to be found anywhere. His layouts, selections…always the right choices. A magazine that is both fun to flip through yet deserves a spot on the bookshelf along with some of the best photo books in your collection. Juan shoots with a 28mm lens on a Leica Q2, a Ricoh GR3, and a Fuji X100V, which allows him to get up close and personal. These raw and edgy shots transport the viewer to the very heart of this snapshot in time. If you’re lucky enough to walk with him on the street, you’ll likely see things in a whole new way. So take a walk with us, feast your eyes on his amazing work, and cross the avenue with Juan Sostre. “My street photography is 80% candid shots and 20% staged. I’m more a hunter than a fisher. Those candid shots are ones in which you can feel the action, the movement, the spontaneous second in life unexpectedly, without necessarily having the subject entirely in the frame or straight. The 28mm focus length allows me to archive those compositions and get close enough to capture their breath and get my artistic vision. Like a Fly, I'm there seeing you from the point of view that the human eyes are not used to seeing. Maybe in silence, or maybe I make you uncomfortable. I hope the viewer feels and gets that when they see my work. Even when I’m not closer to my subject, I still want to keep that point of view, where my composition makes you see what human eyes are not used to approaching.” IN CONVERSATION WITH JUAN SOSTRE THE PICTORIAL LIST: Welcome Juan! To get started please tell our readers about yourself. What would you say first drew you to photography? JUAN SOSTRE: I studied Image & Design at La Escuela de Artes de Puerto Rico in Old San Juan, where I took a basic photography class, learning how to work in a dark room. It was not until a few years later, in 2007, that my passion for photography started showing up when I needed to start capturing my son's mom's belly. After my son was born, I started capturing those same moments for other families. In 2017, Puerto Rico was ravaged and flooded by Hurricane Maria, and that was when I fled to California to start a new life with my son. I knew I needed extra money since I was without a job and living off my savings for the first few months. Unfortunately, I was forced to sell my camera just to make sure that I had enough money to put food on the table for my son. I was blessed to get a job in an Advertising Agency as Creative lead / Senior Art Director here in California, but it wasn’t until 2020 that I started to find my footing with my work and life. TPL: What was the first camera you ever held in your hand, brought to your eye, and released a shutter on? What is the camera you use now, and your preferred focal length? Does the equipment you use help you in achieving your vision in your photography? JS: After using a Canon for years, I bought a Fujifilm X100V 35mm-equivalent focal to use in my day-by-day commute on the train between San Jose and San Francisco. It was that time when the pandemic hit us, and I tried my hardest to keep shooting as much as possible, even shooting portraits at my place with some models, just to get to know my gear. Then I discovered the Ricoh GRIII 28mm through a friend, and I knew from then on that was going to be my preferred focal length. Since September 2022, I have been shooting with a Leica Q2 28mm as my main camera, and it completely helps me to archive my vision in photography. TPL: When you take pictures, do you usually have a concept in mind of what you want to shoot, or do you let the images just "come to you," or is it both? Please describe your process. JS: I never go out with something in mind. I love being spontaneous and a hunter and going with the vibe of the day. Maybe I can make a stop for a few minutes and be a fisher depending on the location and weather. Most of the time, I keep walking to see what shows in front of me, and then I press the shutter without any hesitation. I barely use my viewfinder to get those points of view. I may look at it or at the screen to see if I got the shot, which I always shoot in black and white and lets me focus on the composition of the frame and don’t get distracted by the colors that I already saw. And never go back home and look at my frames the same day since I don’t want to get influenced by the excitement of my day if it was a good one. TPL: How do you educate yourself to take better photos? JS: First, I go out there and shoot as much as possible. Either local in the Bay Area, especially in San Francisco, or travel to other countries to have a different stage and people cultures. Collaborating with my colleagues and having a great conversation about photography with a beer in hand, sharing feedback about our work with respect. Also buying books and a lot of YouTube videos related to film or digital photography. TPL: Do you have any favorite artists or photographers you would like to share with us and the reason for their significance? JS: When I was an art student, I was a big fan of Salvador Dalí and René Magritte, among many others. The same with photography, I have been influenced by a few great names like Mark Cohen, Bruce Gilden, Saul Leiter, Garry Winogrand, and many others as well. Without taking credit away from so many talented ones on Instagram and my colleagues and friends, photographers with whom I walk the street and shoot monthly, and others in other cities. I have learned from each of them, and I'm grateful for that. I will say Mark Cohen’s work has been my biggest inspiration to be the fly I am today. TPL: What have been some of your most favorite places you find inspiration to explore through your photography, and what draws you there? The City of San Francisco, I will say, because it is where I’m shooting most of the time. The diversity of neighborhoods and people. The weather changes constantly. But saying that, I will say that I have been to New York, London, and Barcelona recently, and each city is unique and inspires me in different ways. The way I approach my subjects, the weather, and the time of the day, and I’m looking forward to continuing to discover more cities that can make me grow and keep me inspired on the streets. I love being spontaneous and a hunter and going with the vibe of the day. TPL: What are the origins of The Avenue magazine? JS: As a creative designer, when I started shooting in the Bay Area, I noticed that there was not a platform out there, such as a magazine or zine, to showcase the work of talented street photographers. We only had Instagram, where everyone was sharing their photos, but for me, it isn't the same feeling. A better one that you can grab in your hand, start flipping pages and start your own collection of good work. I started designing and curating by myself "The Avenue - Street Photography Magazine." The support was great from the first edition. After the first one, I felt the need to expand it outside of the Bay Area and has been the best decision I made. Since then, more street photographers around the world have been part of it in different editions and have arrived in countries I never expected. My mission has always been to highlight those well-known photographers and incoming ones to allow them to share the same space and share the different styles of street photography and learn from each other. TPL: What are the greatest challenges of publishing a magazine? JS: I will say for me, the biggest challenge is having a good budget to produce the magazine. I do the design and curate it, and then I send it to a fulfillment that takes care of the printing and shipping. Which means they take 90% of the profit. People think that I'm making money out of it, but it is not like that. I just continue because I feel and know that we need The Avenue Magazine and more platforms like this one to keep showcasing the great talent out there. It is not the same to see a frame on Instagram as having it printed, like back in the day. I respect and admire the other magazines out there that are doing the same in the east side and around the world since I don't see them as competition; I just see them as colleagues that are helping to expand our vision. I have so much passion for this magazine and believe in the talented street photographers out there that I know one day I will be producing and taking care of everything in-house, and I hope to keep counting on the support of the community to keep going. TPL: What is the most rewarding part of being a photographer for you? JS: Wow! Seeing the final product printed and turning that second that will not come back into a lifetime one where people can appreciate it per year. Connecting with others around the world that share my same passion. There are so many rewarding moments. TPL: Are there any special projects that you are currently working on that you would like to let everyone know about? JS: Yes! I’m actually getting ready to be part of a Street Photography Collective Exhibition called “THROUGH OUR EYES” on May 6th in San Francisco, California, where I will be sharing walls with my super-talented friends Harry Williams, Demondre Ward, Patrick Stevens, Harvey Castro, and Stephen Laszlo. I feel honored about this one. After that show, I want to continue working on a project based in Downtown San Jose and start giving form to it. Then I will get ready to curate the work submitted by photographers for issue #5 of The Avenue Magazine. TPL: What are some of your photography goals? Where do you hope to see yourself in five years? JS: As a street photographer, one of my goals is to continue traveling to other cities, like Tokyo, Colombia, Brazil, and many others, to step up my game. Meet more local photographers from those cities and share the street with them. I’d like to continue showing my work in collective exhibitions and one day make my own on my island of Puerto Rico. I’d love to curate and be a judge in one of the prestige street photography festivals in the next five years. Last but not least, get to publish my second book and get it designed by a close friend. TPL: “When I am not out photographing, I (like to)… JS: When I’m not on the street with my camera, maybe I’m at home designing, but the truth is that I switch from being a photographer to being “Papi.” I spend most of my time with my teenage son and looking at what to do to create memories with him.” VIEW JUAN'S PORTFOLIO Juan's website >>> Juan's instagram >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.

THE SILENCES WHERE WE SEE Francesca Tiboni's personal journey as a photographer depicts the unique cultural stories found in her community in the old city of Cagliari. THE SILENCES WHERE WE SEE February 18, 2022 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Francesca Tiboni INTERVIEW Karen Ghostlaw Pomarico Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE Francesca Tiboni’s personal journey as a photographer is rooted in her communication skills and depicts the unique cultural stories found in her community in the old city of Cagliari, Sardinia. Focusing on the simple details of everyday life, presented to her as she walks through the enchanting neighborhoods of this medieval city, Francesca translates through her photographs what it is like to live in a city with so much history, with little influences from outside cultures. Francesca’s family plays an integral role in her exploration, leading to a better understanding of how they are becoming part of Cagliari’s story, and what colorful details they will add to this part of Italy’s history. The Pictorial List asked Francesca to share her explorations, and some of her discoveries. “I have been living in this city for 15 years and I am deeply in love with it. It has a moving beauty, for the light, the colors of the stones, the enchanting sea. I can't stop discovering it. It is a privilege to feel welcomed in a place but, at the same time, to keep the stranger's gaze and amazement.” IN CONVERSATION WITH FRANCESCA TIBONI THE PICTORIAL LIST: Francesca please tell us about yourself, and what your work is in corporate communications. What does your work bring to your photography? FRANCESCA TIBONI: My work pushes me to put myself on the client's side, to understand his point of view. I often have to translate information from a very technical language to a more easily understood language. Photography is also the story of many points of view. Your own, that of those who are photographed. A set of many different perceptions that visually build a new message that encompasses all these components. TPL: You say you inherited your passion for photography from your father, paint that portrait of him, and explain the inspiration and passion he left you with. FT: My father was a simple amateur photographer but he always encouraged me in this passion and, in general, he’s always been very supportive of my choices. He is a person very attentive to detail, without being obsessed, he certainly passed to me the devotion for precision and for a job well done. Two of my maternal uncles took and developed their photos at home. Even though I came from a very peripheral place, a village in the mountains of northern Italy, where the lack of cultural stimuli, like museums, bookshops, theaters, cinemas and exhibitions create a narrow environment. The access to flashes of beauty aroused in me a desire for research which I was then able to satisfy in the years I spent at Ca Foscari University in Venice. TPL: Do you feel your work documents or is an expression of the moments you capture in the street? FT: I think both readings are true, honest street and documentary photography does not artificially create situations to build a story but, at the same time, it is the point of view of the shooter that creates the story. No one is more aware than photographers of the many different truths that can be told. TPL: Francesca, you photograph beautiful details of your city, what do these details mean to you in the wonderful stories they tell. How have the streets and culture you capture influence your photography? How have your captures changed the way you see Cagliari? FT: For some years I have been doing research on the city of Cagliari which is not so much about finding beautiful geometric shapes or interesting palettes. What interests me is to discover how the city of people and that of buildings intertwine, how the city changes over time and yet maintains elements that characterise it and make it unique. Distinctive features that pass from people to the urbanised environment and vice versa. This investigation passes through the exploration of the suburbs which are more of a social concept than a geographical one. Poverty, the invisibility that hides both near and far from the Inner city. I am a person deeply in love with humanity, for many years I have volunteered in the prisons here, listening to the prisoners. I have remained in love with humanity, a humanity that underneath remains even in people suffering the most, or who have committed the worst crimes. Through urban details, clothes hanging, windows, walls painted in one way or another, I like to tell the beauty that comes from man. Sometimes we think that harmony is found only in the beauty of nature, I find it a lot in the suburbs, between peeling walls, in spaces that people want and need to personalize. TPL: Is there an artist that has influenced your work? If so, who were they and what was the influence? FT: A photographer I enormously admire is Joel Meyerowitz, as an artist and as a man. His approach to photography, a continuous research that changes over time, is something that fascinates me. Beyond the images of him, his words are of great inspiration. In moments of artistic confusion, I listen to some of his podcast interviews that I saved on my phone, he always manages to bring me back to the surface. I love his photographs but also his words. In general I like photographers with a profound and prophetic vision of reality, who tell stories delicately: Raymond Depardon, Mary Ellen Mark, Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb, Alec Soth, Jesse Marlow, Luigi Ghirri and Gianni Berengo Gardin… I could go on and on. Documentary photography tells so many stories that as photographers, stay with us. They may even change the way we see or the way we tell stories. A cause with a direct effect. Is there a special photographic moment you can recall that will always remain with you, that changed your view of the world in which you shoot in? I like to photograph people on the street, when I feel a particular energy I approach them and ask if I can take a picture. The subjects shot are always involved with me, they are people to whom I explain the use I will make of the images and with whom I will remain in contact with later. Partly because of my personal journey and partly because of the level of openness that I give and that I ask for in the moment of photography, often people I engage even for a few minutes of a street portrait, they share experiences very painful and personal with me. I remember the first two portraits I took with a 35mm lens, which forced me to be in a certain proximity. They were both women and both told me about episodes of their life so distressing and intimate that in the end they cried in front of me and I behind the camera. I was absolutely not prepared for such an opening of heart. Later I started interacting in a slightly different way with the subjects in order to give space to their story without letting themselves be overwhelmed by emotion like a flooding river. It must be a moment of intense but harmonious exchange. Sometimes we think that harmony is found only in the beauty of nature, I find it a lot in the suburbs, between peeling walls, in spaces that people want and need to personalize. TPL: When you are out shooting - how much of it is instinctual versus planned? FT: Before shooting and after shooting I am super rational. Before, I dedicate time to plan, after, to analyse my bad photographs that are somewhat vivisected. It is a merciless activity from which I learn a lot. While I photograph, on the other hand, I am totally in a trance state, I enter another dimension that is totally instinctive and irrational. TPL: What are any lasting impressions you would like to leave the viewer? What is their ‘Take Away’? FT: There is always room for beauty, if you look for it, you will find it. TPL: Does the equipment you use help you in achieving your vision in your photography? (What camera do you use? Do you have a preferred lens/focal length?) FT: I switched to Leica in 2018, all the photos showcased here are made with a M10 and a 35mm lens. This camera helped me to focus completely on creativity, on how to make the photo and not how to manage the camera. Recently I was involved in a collaboration with Leica Camera Italia that gave me the opportunity to try the new M11 and, apart from the amazingness of the camera, I can say that the M system is just the perfect fit for me. Light, easy to use, producing astonishing files that need very basic editing. I feel that using a prime lens pushes me to create better photos and a nicer connection with my subjects. TPL: Is there an artist or photographer’s quote that has inspired you and influences the way you approach your work? FT: I love Henri Cartier-Bresson quote - “You just have to live and life will give you pictures”. For me, the most important part of the process is the encounter with people: life. Photography is a consequence of this encounter. Sometimes the encounter remains, it is lived, but there is no photograph and I’m totally OK with that. TPL: What are some of your goals as an artist or photographer? Where do you hope to see yourself in five years? FT: Working full time, not as a photographer, and having a family with two young children behind me, I hope that my work conveys, especially to other women, the message that there is always the possibility to dedicate oneself to something you love, to express yourself artistically, in an art form as humble yet powerful as photography. In five years I see myself making better photos with the same enthusiasm or more! TPL: "When I am not out photographing, I (like to)… FT: I like being involved in any experience that asks me questions instead of giving me answers." VIEW FRANCESCA'S PORTFOLIO Read SOMETHING ABOUT THE FUTURE by Francesca Website >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.

THAT’S HOW IT IS Luisa Montagna explores the fluid nature of reality - how it shifts depending on the observer, emphasizing that subjective perception takes precedence over objective truth. THAT’S HOW IT IS (if it seems to me) February 2, 2025 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Luisa Montagna INTERVIEW Melanie Meggs Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE Luisa Montagna’s artistic evolution bridges music, visual communication, and photography. Trained as a professional cellist, she spent years performing in orchestras and chamber ensembles before dedicating herself to visual arts and photography. This transition marked a shift in how Luisa has approached creative expression — from sound to images, from performance to visual storytelling. Initially drawn to documentary reportage, Luisa’s work has evolved toward an evocative approach, where layered and blended images challenge the viewer’s perception of reality. Her latest project, “That's how it is (if it seems to me)”, borrows its title from Luigi Pirandello’s well-known play. In this series, Luisa explores the fluid nature of reality — how it shifts depending on the observer, emphasizing that subjective perception takes precedence over objective truth. Through her photographs, she invites viewers to consider the unknowability of what we accept as real and the value of personal interpretation. In this interview, Luisa Montagna reflects on her artistic progression, the conceptual underpinnings of her recent series, how her visual work continues to engage with broader questions of perception and identity, and her ongoing search for personal and artistic identity. “Very early on I realized that there exist many different ways of seeing and perceiving reality, as many as there are people. This is one of the reasons why human relationships are so complex. I think the relationship with my cello, or my camera is much simpler, even though we often argue. Joking aside, I like to share my own view of reality. I hope my images shift the focus to another possible way of seeing the world, maybe a fantasy, magical, dystopian world, but never a copy of a real world. That’s why That’s how it is (if it seems to me).” IN CONVERSATION WITH LUISA MONTAGNA THE PICTORIAL LIST: Welcome to The Pictorial List, Luisa! Let's start, by talking about photography entering your life at an advanced stage, almost unexpectedly. How did that first experience with a camera shift your creative focus? LUISA: It gives me great pleasure to join this interesting community of The Pictorial List. I started photography when I was no longer very young, somewhat by accident, when my husband gave me one of his cameras. At first, I only photographed when I went on vacation and took very “touristy” pictures. When I began to have back problems, I almost completely abandoned the camera because of the weights I could no longer carry. But after a few years the new mirrorless cameras, much lighter, came out on the market and I immediately bought one. From that day on, I never stop photographing. It is since then that my path as a photographer changed totally, almost suddenly, although I am sure that something matured in me during the period of inactivity. TPL: You began your artistic career as a professional cellist and later transitioned into visual communication and photography. How do you think your background in music influences your photographic work today? LUISA: Very often I have reflected on this topic, and the answer is not simple. Perhaps it influences the “forma mentis” of the classical musician, who studies a lot, always digs deep into the score and looks for artistic inspiration from it. A great peculiarity of art in general is that it moves feelings, emotions, thoughts: the deepest and most personal part of ourselves. I think I have internalized all that, which is now expressed in my photography in a completely natural way. I also find that there is a great affinity between classical music and photography in the development of stories, the first through compositions consisting of multiple tempos that have a theme as a common thread that runs throughout the piece, the second through storytelling that develops the theme according to a rhythm. TPL: You overlap and merge images to create a dreamlike aesthetic. What is your process for deciding which elements to combine, and what are you hoping to evoke? LUISA: I usually use different techniques depending on the type of image I want to achieve. In the series That's how it is (if it seems to me), which is a work-in-progress series, I choose from some of my photos according to my mood at that moment and put them together trying to create an alternative vision of reality. In other series I use a particular technique that gives me a chance to take my dreamy vision in one picture. I really like to make images in the moment, based on what I find interesting and stimulating, it is difficult for me to meditate on individual shots in detail. I can say that I am instinctive in photography. Even the subjects I choose are the result of the moment: I see a situation that I like and I imagine the snapshot. In this sense I think my images are the expression of myself. My hope is to provide starting points for the viewer to experience an emotion, a dream, an escape, an imaginative thinking about an alternative world. TPL: Do you think your work is more about escaping reality, questioning it, or reconstructing it? LUISA: Regarding this topic, let me tell you a little anecdote. When I played, a conductor, who often came to conduct, used to say to me during rehearsals: Luisa, don't dream! Maybe it was his way of telling me to be more careful, but now I can say that the escape from reality is part of me, it is an aspect of my character that is reflected in the way I photograph. TPL: When creating this series, were you influenced by any particular artists, movements, or philosophical ideas? LUISA: I can say no, or maybe it’s yes, but I don’t realize it. For years, I have studied the lives and works of great or unknown photographers, painters, writers, and composers, but I have no idols — only preferences. I believe I have arrived at this way of expressing myself because it has matured within me, and when I look back, I see that I have come a long way. TPL: You describe photography as a path of growth and self-expression. What does “self-expression” mean to you within the visual medium? LUISA: In my opinion, it means having the ability to translate one's inner world into images — a way of being that is the result of one's character and life experiences. TPL: What rewards and challenges have you faced as a photographer starting later in life, and how have they shaped your perspective as an artist? LUISA: I had the good fortune, in quotes, to approach this way of photography just before the pandemic, so during lockdowns I started taking online courses and workshops, and during non-restrictive periods I would practice. The challenges came when I started submitting my projects to national and international competitions and the first satisfactions came. This gave me confidence to continue on my path and I think I will continue to search for myself in photography. It is difficult for me to say whether my beginning at an older age affects the way I photograph, but I think it does. When you photograph, your past, your history comes into play. TPL: Looking ahead, how do you see your artistic voice evolving? Are there any themes, techniques, or approaches you are eager to explore in the future? What are your photography goals and where do you hope to see yourself in the next 3-5 years? LUISA: I am certainly thinking of new themes to develop and new techniques to study. My dream in the closet is to make a book and a solo exhibition, but I don't set myself any time limits. For now, I am participating in group exhibitions, which is important for me to understand the world of art galleries. TPL: What would we find in your camera bag? Is your equipment an integral part of your practice? LUISA: I use a mirrorless and have three lenses, one of which I use a lot right now. With this equipment I'm trying to figure out what is the best result that I get based on the subjects that I identify. I never prepare my shots, so I test at the very moment I shoot. TPL: If you could just choose one photographer or artist to shoot or collaborate with for a day...who would you choose? And why? LUISA: I really love cinema, so certainly a day on the set of a Federico Fellini film. In his films he was able to create dreamy, timeless atmospheres that were a great inspiration to me. Tarkovsky, too, for the universal themes of his films shot with few tools, but with great effectiveness. Now I can only review their great films. TPL: “When I am not out photographing, I (like to)… LUISA: Play my cello. It is my second life partner after my husband.” Thank you, Melanie, for this beautiful interview of yours. It was a good time for me to stop and reflect on my photographic world. VIEW LUISA'S PORTFOLIO Website >>> Instagram >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.

CONNECTED DICHOTOMIES Tatyana Mazok's photography transcends art, weaving life's threads into evocative diptychs that reveal interconnected narratives, challenging us to see the beauty and complexity in our shared experiences. CONNECTED DICHOTOMIES July 5, 2024 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Tatyana Mazok INTERVIEW Melanie Meggs Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE Emerging from the vibrant urban fabric of Minsk in Belarus, photographer Tatyana Mazok captures the essence of existence through her lens. With a rich academic background at Belarusian State Economic University, Tatyana tempered her mind with discipline, later infusing her artistic work with precision and passion. It was through photography that she discovered her authentic voice, a confluence of her diverse interests and her intrinsic identity. In 2019, under the illuminating mentorship of Elena Sukhoveyeva and Viktor Khmel, Tatyana’s creative flame was kindled, propelling her on a journey of exploration through the author’s school. Subsequent years saw her delve deeper into the nuances of the craft, navigating the realms of visual history at the Fojo: Media Institute Linnaus University and honing her cinematic eye at the esteemed ‘Marusina Masterskaya.’ Tatyana transcends mere technical skill. Her photography embodies the ability to capture the ephemeral, immortalizing the beauty of life’s transient moments. In her own words, “I shoot what I love and what interests me at a particular moment. And I get satisfaction from capturing the moment.” In her series “Connections,” Tatyana presents an introspective journey, using evocative diptychs to explore the complex web of relationships that shape our existence. Her lens thoughtfully transforms everyday moments into timeless reflections of beauty and self-discovery. Authenticity and emotional resonance are the cornerstones of Tatyana’s photographic philosophy. Her intuitive approach fosters a depth of immediacy and honesty, drawing viewers into her experiential narrative. Throughout the series, Tatyana deftly captures the ceaseless flux of the world around her. From the ever-shifting landscape of her urban surroundings to the subtle nuances of human interaction, each image serves as a testament to the ephemeral nature of existence. Yet, amidst the perpetual tide of change, Tatyana finds solace in the unchanging beauty of the natural world. As she eloquently observes, “The photos remain unchanged: family, nature, city and myself.” Central to the thematic fabric of “Connections” is Tatyana’s exploration of the myriad connections that bind us to one another and to the world at large. Tatyana skillfully reveals the hidden patterns of interdependence, sparking contemplation of our profound interconnectedness. Whether capturing the delicate symmetry of a family unit or the symbiotic relationship between humanity and the environment, Tatyana’s images serve as poignant reminders of our shared humanity. Beyond the visual allure, Tatyana’s work invites philosophical contemplation on memory and perception. She captures not just the world around her but also her personal experience within it, offering a unique perspective on the narrative flow of life and the resonance of visual storytelling. Join us in delving into Tatyana Mazok’s heartfelt photographic vision — a vision that extends beyond mere documentation, embodying the profound impact of photography as a conduit for introspection and discovery. “CONNECTIONS is a polysemantic name. On the one hand, there is an external visual connection between the photographs in each diptych: through color, compositional technique, and similarity. On the other hand, it is about the connection between human and nature, human and the city. And, how much they have in common. It’s also about my internal connection with each element in the photograph, because it’s all familiar to me: my beloved children, Belarusian nature, familiar roads and courtyards.” IN CONVERSATION WITH TATYANA MAZOK THE PICTORIAL LIST: Welcome to The Pictorial List Tatyana. What drew you to pursue photography as a form of artistic expression? TATYANA: At the very beginning of my journey, the technical part of photography was very difficult and took a long time for me. I slowed down and didn’t think about artistic language at all. I wanted to reveal all the technical secrets and, by pressing the camera button, produce beautiful masterpieces, filming everything. It was a great practical experience that led me to understand that photography can speak without words, speak for me, broadcast my inner feelings of the world around me. TPL: What role do diptychs play in conveying the interconnectedness of life in your work? How do you approach the composition and presentation of your diptychs to convey the connections you seek to highlight? TATYANA: Life and creativity are inseparable for me. In the diptychs there is an intensification of life. Moments from it. Let's just say, life twice: here it is life from frequent traces of birds on fresh snow and here is how the first rays of the sun covered a young face with freckles. They seem to be static objects, but they are a recording of what is happening in my life. The process of creating diptychs is always a unique event. It happens that one of the parts waits for its other half for two or three years. I don't deliberately shoot a frame in tandem with an existing one. I just take a photo of something, and then I scroll through it in my head and remember that once upon a time I already took a photo that would look incredibly good with it. Sometimes I make mistakes, but most of the time this exercise is successful. Can you imagine how great it is to bring together different years and different places? Of course, I pay attention to the composition of both parts. To enhance the effect, sometimes you have to crop the original frame. TPL: How do you incorporate elements of emotion and storytelling into your photographs to evoke a deeper connection with viewers? What emotions or messages do you hope viewers experience or take away from your photographs? TATYANA: I achieve contact with the viewer by close framing and large details. It turns out to be a kind of presence effect. The project is not difficult to perceive, visually calm in color, and it seems to me that every viewer will find in it something from their everyday life, memories from yesterday or today. I would also like the project to remind everyone of the beauty of every moment, of the value of our everyday life. TPL: How do you select the subjects or scenes that you capture in your photographs? What role does personal reflection play in your photography process, particularly in relation to your own connection to the subjects you photograph? TATYANA: Most often, my attention is attracted by lines, geometry, a fallen shadow, or my internal problem. I can walk and notice a fallen leaf, and now it’s already in the frame. I haven't photographed everything for a long time. And at different periods of my life my focus of attention changes. This gives food for thought - what is most important to me now. My inner experiences are transferred into photography. This changes the topic of research, working through a photograph of one’s feelings. This also affects the choice of color combinations in the frame. TPL: Can you share a memorable experience or moment that significantly influenced your approach to your photography in general? TATYANA: I had the experience of taking an amazing “Film Frame” course, where students watched films of one famous director every week, for example, “Kurosawa.” We analyzed the director’s visual language, his distinctive techniques, for what purposes and emotions they are applicable. And then they filmed their shoot using that language. Afterwards, I always thought about what I wanted to say with my shot, and what color, light, and compositional technique would help me with this. I also began to look at photographs of other authors, analyzing the author’s language. My photography serves as a documentation of my life. TPL: In what ways does your photography serve as a form of documentation or storytelling of your life and experiences? TATYANA: In general, all my photography is a document of my life. Whether I shoot self-portraits or my surroundings, this is all my little story. I show up in my photographs. You could say it's a photo diary. And, if they look back, this woman’s diary will talk about her mood, outlook on life, favorite color, some internal conflicts, joyful moments. And sometimes this diary has blank pages. TPL: Can you share any insights or lessons you've learned about yourself or the world through the process of creating “CONNECTIONS”? TATYANA: In the process of selecting photographs for the “Connections” project, I once again reminded myself of my inspiration and my content. Reviewing several years of archives, I have determined that my eye and my camera focus on what I love. I am filled with my family, the city I live in, trips to nature and myself. TPL: What drew you to study under Elena Sukhoveyeva and Viktor Khmel at the author’s school, and how did that experience influence your photography? And, how has completing courses such as ‘Photo History’ at Fojo: Media Institute Linnaus University shaped your understanding and approach to photography? TATYANA: At a certain point, I felt limited in my knowledge of photography. And how funny it is for me now, it seemed to me that I already knew so much. But I didn't know where to move next. In the direction. I was drawn to art, but there seemed to be a gap between us. I understood that I couldn’t handle self-education on my own; I needed a guide. In my search for a teacher, in reading reviews, in correspondence with graduates of Elena and Victor, I realized that this was what I needed. But I didn’t know that this would be the most difficult training, full of information, lectures, and deep immersion in project photography. A new, different world opened up for me, new names in the world of photography. Unfortunately, for a number of reasons, I was never able to complete my graduation project at this school. The knowledge gained here was structured in my head and rethought over the next three years. We can say that they were the basis for my design thinking and are still sprouting. The “Photo History” course, on the contrary, turned out to be easy for me to understand, but also deep in knowledge. A lot of material was filmed. I learned to speak through a series of photographs. My personnel selection process has changed, my view of topics that are of interest to society and other people, but not previously relevant to me, has expanded. But the main takeaway is to always choose what is important to you. Then working on history will be a pleasure. TPL: What other photographers or artists have influenced you, and how? What impact have they made in the way you approach and create your work in photography? TATYANA: I am firmly convinced that everything I saw and heard earlier in one way or another influenced me as a photographer. Something is filtered, something is analyzed and leaves an imprint. But I cannot pinpoint the authors who shaped my approach. I can name who I'm currently inspired by. Among the photographers are Jaume Llorens with poetic images of nature, Saul Leiter with his irregular framing, negative space, amazing color, Ilina Vicktoria - her portraits fascinate with light, contrast and deep emotion. I also really love the visual techniques of director Paolo Sorrentino. TPL: What do you hope to achieve with your photography in terms of personal growth? TATYANA: Great question! And of course I will be honest. I dream that my photograph will become part of the collection of MOMA, the Hermitage, and the European House of Photography in Paris. I dream of becoming one of the hundred most famous female photographers in the world. Loud, but that's how it is! TPL: When you are not creating your art through your photography, what else could we find Tatyana doing? TATYANA: I try to find time for everything that is dear to me. I used to sew a lot, embroider, and make jewelry. Now I read more, go to theaters, museums and of course spend time with my large family. VIEW TATYANA'S PORTFOLIO Website >>> Instagram >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.

FARAH'S CHARIOT Carla Henoud is a journalist and a photographer who captures sweet sceneries set on Beirut's famous Corniche that show her love for this place. FARAH'S CHARIOT March 25, 2021 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Carla Henoud INTERVIEW Melanie Meggs Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE Life itself can be beautiful but for those that get a chance to experience the beauty that is Beirut's Corniche, there is something magical about it. Carla Henoud has been fortunate enough to capture this magic in her photography and has dedicated her last three years to documenting this stunning place with her lens. The result of these efforts have been exhibited in a gallery and published in a book, 'Le Chariot de Farah' in 2018, and it has been a testament to the beauty that Carla has seen in the Corniche. Her photos capture the picture-perfect scenes of the Corniche, full of life, with its picture-perfect blue skies and its people. No matter who is viewing Carla's work, the emotion that she has captured in her photographs is undeniable. “As a reporter, I had the opportunity to interview a man called Ali who used to work on the Corniche and sell orange juices on a wooden cart, as his father and grandfather used to do. But the authorities forced him to stop and destroyed it. As I was taking pictures of this and Corniche for about 3 years and had important material and archives I could use, I decided to write my own story inspired by Ali's. Most pieces of the story and the characters are taken from my own family, and I replaced Ali with Farah, a young woman working in a man's 'field'. 'Le Chariot de Farah' starts in the 60's and ends in 2018. It describes perfectly what Beirut was and still is. Or maybe what we are fighting for, keeping it a mixed city where people from different backgrounds and religions can live together peacefully.” IN CONVERSATION WITH CARLA HENOUD THE PICTORIAL LIST: Carla please tell us about yourself. How did you become interested in photography? CARLA HENOUD: I was born in Beirut, Lebanon. Lived for ten years in Paris, France, during our 'civil' war, and came back home late 90’s. I started taking pictures at 16 years old, with my Canon AE1. Then I studied advertising at the Lebanese Academy of Art (ALBA) and developed this passion since then. As a journalist, photography became also part of my work, as it tells story as well as my words do. TPL: What is it that you enjoy about documentary photography? Explain your technique? What do you want to express through your photography? And what are some of the elements you always try to include in your photographs? CH: I find it challenging to go to the same place and discover new things about it. That same place is like my theater; it is the same background with different characters, variant lights, various stories, etc. The corniche by the sea, in Beirut, is my place of choice; it probably is the only spot in Lebanon that reunites people from different social classes and religions, in perfect tolerance and harmony. This is how Lebanon should be! Apart from its symbolic aspect, the corniche is also the scenery I always like to capture at all hours and in different seasons. It includes everything I choose to have in a picture: the sea, the sky, the human element and the street. It is urban and nature photography in one. Therefore, my personal challenge is to ‘cast’ the right human element at the right time in this existent scenery. I have been doing this for five years now before issuing the Book “Le Chariot de Farah” in October 2018. As for the technical part, I always carry light cameras to move easily. I also use wide angles and/or 50mm. No zoom lenses! I prefer getting closer to my subject, establish a quick contact, build trust that might lead to a conversation. No photoshop ever! I remain as close and intimate as possible to what I see. The angle I choose to snap the picture will make the difference. Being a journalist and a photographer, my purpose is to tell stories through my lens and share (new) emotions. TPL: What is it like photographing on the streets of Beirut? How has the pandemic affected you personally and your photography? CH: I enjoy going to the same place over and over again (the Corniche) and I always find inspiration. Always able to find and show something new, to discover new people, to meet others that I discovered during all these years and listen to their stories. And share all that. The sky, the sea, a person, are very important in my pictures. And most of all emotions. Beirut is a living city, so many beautiful and sad things are happening there since 2019. It’s a beautiful destroyed city one can only be passionate about. I love its old buildings, windows, people, sea. I love to find and show beauty in ugliness. It gives hope… During the pandemic, and different lockdowns (currently in a lockdown at time of interview) streets become empty and the sky, the shadows, the colours are so pure. I just miss people… TPL: Do you have any favourite artists or photographers you would like to share with us, and the reason for their significance? CH: Henri Cartier-Bresson, "un classique” who was able to take great pictures with his 50 mm lens and no photoshop (which I never use). I like also Bruce Gilden, Robert Frank, Vivian Maier, Joseph Koudelka, Martin Parr, Seydou Keïta (even if his pictures are mostly in a studio). TPL: When you go out photographing, do you have a concept in mind of what you want to shoot, or do you let the images just "come to you", or is it both? CH: When I go out, all my senses are wide open (like a cat!) and just waiting and hoping for the encounter. In the back of my mind, I am always looking for places, people, a mood and a story. “Keep walking” is a motto I often bring back to help me cope with what we Lebanese are going through for so long and especially these last two years. TPL: Does the equipment you use help you in achieving your vision in your photography? What camera do you use? Do you have a preferred lens/focal length? CH: I use a Leica D-Lux, a Fujifilm W-T1 and a Sony. Some are good because, also, they are light and easy to handle. Some are too complicated for street photography where you don’t have time to adjust. I prefer wide angles or a 50mm lens. TPL: Have you ever been involved in the creative world before photography? CH: At school, in Paris, I made a short movie with friends (Super 8). A friend, Stephane Drouot, was playing the role of 'director'. He became famous a few years later and got a Cesar for a short movie he wrote and directed late 80’s. He unfortunately passed away… TPL: What are some of your goals as an artist? Where do you see yourself or hope to see yourself in five years? CH: My goals are to sharpen my eye and emotions even more, to always improve myself and always be surprised by what I do and what I see. I need, now more than ever, to always seek for beauty during these hard times the world and we Lebanese are going through. TPL: Are there any special projects you are currently working on that you would like to let everyone know about? CH: After my first book 'Le Chariot de Farah', a fiction with pictures of the Corniche, issued on October 2018 with an exhibition in Beirut, I am planning to do something more with it, as a series or a movie (with of course the help of professionals in this industry). And then start another personal project where I can mix writing and photography. Let’s hope we will have better days in Lebanon to be able to do so… TPL: When I am not out photographing, I (like to)… CH: Write. Travel. VIEW CARLA'S PORTFOLIO Carla's instagram >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.

PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. PERIPHERAL PLACES June 15, 2025 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Catia Montagna INTERVIEW Melanie Meggs Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE In ‘Peripheral Places’, Catia Montagna constructs a lyrical topography of the ephemeral — a series of triptychs that speak softly but resonate deeply. Born in Italy and now living between the United Kingdom and her homeland, Catia is an academic economist by profession, but her artistic voice is shaped not by data, but by a deep, intuitive sensitivity to the poetry of the everyday. A Progressive Street photographer with a growing international presence, her work reveals a philosophical and reflective perspective — one grounded in an awareness of time, memory, and social impermanence. ‘Peripheral Places’ is part of her long-term series ‘Short Stories’ — a project that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into carefully curated triptychs. These “short stories,” as Catia terms them, are not narratives in the traditional sense. Instead, they are elliptical visual fragments, as minimal and open-ended as whispers of verse, anchored in the belief that less is often more. The triadic structure, like a literary vignette, provides just enough to provoke memory and emotion without closing the interpretive door. The places Catia captures are non-places in the Augé sense, but they hum with subtle presence. The human figure is nearly absent, but never far. Traces remain: an empty chair, a bent signpost, an empty vehicle — all imbued with the quiet echo of lives once present. Catia’s skill lies in making these echoes visible. Her photographs are not didactic; they ask rather than answer. Who passed through here? What moment unfolded just before or after the shutter clicked? There is an undeniable temporal dimension to her work. Time does not march forward. Each image is a still point in a turning world, evoking that moment when something is already becoming memory. This feeling is enhanced by her muted tones and soft natural light, which eschew the harshness of modernity for something quieter and more reflective. Her compositions feel accidental yet exacting, and always respectful of the space they depict. The photographs avoid central focal points, compelling us to explore the margins — mirroring Catia’s deeper thematic exploration of the periphery, both as a physical and conceptual space. The tension between the built and the grown is constant, neither fully dominant, each quietly coexisting in states of neglect and endurance. The power of Catia’s work lies in its suggestion rather than its certainty. Each story gains resonance. Images echo and enrich one another through subtle repetition and variation. Sequenced together, the works invite a slow, inward movement — not forward, but deeper into perception. What do we ignore? What lies just beyond our field of view? What stories do the edges tell? In this conversation, we explore the quiet architecture of her vision: her relationship to time, place, and disappearance, and how her dual background in economics and art shapes a photographic voice that speaks not in statements, but in questions. “Looking back at photographs, I often wonder what became of those people with whom I briefly coexisted in a certain place and at a given moment in time. People who only left a trace of light through the lens of my camera, an impression in my memory. Who were they, where were they going? These questions always evoke the idea of a story in my mind and raise the further question of how long a photographic narrative should be – so as not to provide the viewer with too narrow an interpretative key. This is how I began to conceive a project consisting of a series of ‘short stories’ – each of three photographs – that, as in literature, are more ‘open-ended’ than longer, more articulate narratives. Tales that are as short as the chance encounters that underpin them, with human presences often barely hinted at, and united by the fact that the narrator in each is the ‘place’ in which they unfold: places that speak of the passing of time and the ephemerality of existence reflected in the imprints it leaves on objects and landscapes. In Peripheral Places the stories unfold outside large urban centres in sometimes anonymous places, places of passage and of discrete existences frozen in instants of the present as they are already turning into the past.” - Catia Montagna IN CONVERSATION WITH CATIA MONTAGNA THE PICTORIAL LIST: Each story is structured as a photographic triptych. What did the 3-image structure offer you narratively or emotionally that a single image or longer series could not? CATIA MONTAGNA: I think the triptych works well on both a narrative and emotional level for me. The idea of developing short photographic stories did not come to me till the first story in this series – The King of Diamonds – was born. On our way to Brescia to see a Fontana’s exhibition, we stopped at a café near Cremona. It was a quiet and rather hot summer day, with a glaring light, and I was immediately taken by the almost out-of-time atmosphere of the place. I wanted to capture it and took a handful of photos. As we got back on the road, without looking at the photographs, I started to visualise a triptych. It was all rather instinctive, really. I felt there was a story to be told and one single photo could not do it: there was the sign, the dusty courtyard, the somewhat dated décor of the café and inside, behind the old rope curtain, the young people chatting quietly in the rarefied silence of the heat. But to convey the uncertain aura of the place, I knew the story had to be barely sketched, as short as a Japanese haiku. Looking back at it later, it reminded me of the first collection of short stories by Katherine Mansfield I ever read, as a teenager. I was thoroughly captivated by their narrating power – sketched, and yet precise, descriptions of places and people, stories that lingered in the mind and provoked strong emotional responses partly because of their very sense of unfinished. That is how the idea of developing this concept came to me. TPL: Your visual stories lean into ambiguity and openness. How do you negotiate the tension between revealing just enough and allowing space for mystery, interpretation, and the viewer’s own projection? CATIA: I see photography as being intrinsically relational: it is in its nature to say and not to say, to suggest rather than reveal, leaving room for interpretation in what is, ultimately, an open dialogue, a conversation between the photographer, her subjects and the viewer. And as with any conversation, communication is the most effective if any one actor does not take over and dominate the exchange! So, clearly, there is always a tension between the richness of a story and that ‘space for mystery’, as you call it, that has to offer room for the viewer’s freedom of interpretation – or the freedom of interpretation of the photographer, for that matter… A degree of ambiguity needs be there for me too; if a lot is left unsaid, I myself see something different every time I look back at a story. I suppose that is how I resolve this tension – I put into a story just enough not to kill my own curiosity… TPL: You refer to the narrator in these stories as ‘the place’ itself. How do you decide when a place is speaking – and what gives a place, in your eyes, narrative authority? Yes, in these short stories I chose to put the ‘place’ at the centre, as narrator, and to barely hint at the human presence – which I find is increasingly the case when I do street photography. I suppose this partly reflects the strong sense I have of the importance of places, of how they shape and are shaped by our lives. Places speak and can reveal more of a society and a culture than the people who move in them do. I spoke earlier of the relational nature of photography. I very much agree with the view – so powerfully expressed by Ariella Azoulay in her Civil Imagination – that the subject-actors relationship in photography unfolds in and is influenced by the ‘public space’. And our interaction with the public space occurs at the intersection between our personal experiences and the social and cultural structure that precedes those experiences – which, incidentally, is another reason why these stories may speak differently to different people. So, to go back to your question: how do I decide when a place is speaking – and what gives a place narrative authority? It is very subjective. The atmosphere of a place is the first trigger for me when taking photographs. And it is that atmosphere that gives it narrative authority. I need to ‘feel’ the place – and I find that for me this is all the more likely the most ‘normal’ is the place, be it in a city or in the countryside. When a place speaks to me, I want to give it voice through my photographs…whether others will hear the same story remains to be seen – but that is the beauty of it all, I think. 1 - The King of Diamonds © Catia Montagna 2 - The King of Diamonds © Catia Montagna 3 - The King of Diamonds © Catia Montagna 4 - Coca-cola © Catia Montagna 5 - Coca-cola © Catia Montagna 6 - Coca-cola © Catia Montagna TPL: There is a powerful meditation on time and memory throughout this work. How does photography help you process the ephemerality of life – the sense of ‘things passing’ – both personally and conceptually? CATIA: The unstoppable passing of time – I felt it since I was a child. This sense that we are ourselves very transient has gone hand in hand with a certain inability to live in the moment. Photography helps me in this. It is a powerful way for me to feel the moment; it accentuates my awareness of the here and now. I guess for me the experience of photography is what gets closer to a state of meditation. When I photograph, I become oblivious to everything else, and all that exists is that instant. Transient and insignificant as a moment might be, by pressing the shutter I freeze it and recognise its importance, not so much or not always with the intention of documenting it or constructing memories, but to experience it fully in the very instant it is already turning into the past. In this sense, the personal and the conceptual are very much entwined, as it were. TPL: What does the term ‘peripheral’ mean to you – geographically, emotionally, philosophically – and how does it manifest through the series? CATIA: The ‘peripheral’ has always been quite central to my academic interests and work, not least because it is such a multifaceted and dynamic concept. As the non-centre, it can be seen as referring to what is marginal or less important, e.g. in the context of geographical, economic, or social hierarchies – what makes a ‘periphery’ and what does a periphery reveal about the ‘centre’? But the peripheral can also hold the unexplored or the unknown and invite exploration. In a narrow sense, in this series of short stories, the periphery manifests itself in the locations of passage from which we can at best glimpse the busy life of the ‘centre’, or in the sense of quietness but also of remoteness and isolation of a place. But there is more to the idea of periphery than this. To live in the world, to interact with it, to even begin to make sense of it, we need to be able to transcend our own skin and, from within our core, to cross our mental and emotional periphery. And photography can act as the key that unlocks our own boundaries and allows us to look beyond what we see... When a place speaks to me, I want to give it voice through my photographs. TPL: Do you find these peripheral places reflect aspects of your own identity, perhaps your experience of living and travelling between countries, cultures and disciplines? CATIA: Yes, our photography, the lens through which we look at and interpret reality is always the product of who we are. So, I guess my fascination with these peripheral places is somewhat shaped by my personal experiences. Growing up in a working-class environment meant experiencing to an extent both the geographical and the sociological meaning of periphery. And living abroad, travelling across borders has given me glimpses of what it means to inhabit the periphery of a culture. TPL: Is there a relationship between stillness in place and stillness in thought that you are seeking through your photography? CATIA: Yes, I think unconsciously this may well be the case. As I said, photography is also a means for me to fully live in the moment, and achieving a state of temporary stillness is instrumental to it. TPL: Do you set out with a narrative intent when photographing, or does your story form in later reflection – almost like finding poems in prose? CATIA: Normally, setting out with a narrative intent in photography does not work for me! I am rather instinctive – I respond to a situation, to a place, or to an atmosphere. At times, the idea forms while I am taking a photograph and this prompts me to take more pictures, to try to tease out a story that can articulate what I feel. At other times the idea forms later when, looking back at photographs, I start to see patterns emerge that bring out new meanings and interpretations. 7 - The Fiat © Catia Montagna 8 - The Fiat © Catia Montagna 9 - The Fiat © Catia Montagna 10 - The Bridge © Catia Montagna 11 - The Bridge © Catia Montagna 12 - The Bridge © Catia Montagna 13 - The Chair © Catia Montagna 14 - The Chair © Catia Montagna 15 - The Chair © Catia Montagna TPL: If so, how has your work on this project changed your relationship with photography? CATIA: My relationship with photography changes all the time; the more I photograph, the more my photographic interests evolve and the more I feel the need to experiment. This project has had a strong impact because it has changed my view of what a narrative can be. Interestingly, as I am developing the short stories, I have started to work on a couple of projects that are more documentary in nature and therefore require more articulate narratives. But even in these projects, I am very much aware of the tension between revealing and leaving space for the viewer’s interpretation. TPL: What possibilities are you imagining for the next chapters of Short Stories? CATIA: I see it continue to evolve as an exploration of the narrative power of photography, developing in several directions, both in terms of ‘places’ and ‘themes’. In this series of short stories, I used colour – something I do not often do – because when it all started, in the King of Diamond café, I was struck by the light and colour of the scene. I am now working on a black and white series. But the project is still very much fluid, and its final shape could well be very different from what I am currently imagining. VIEW CATIA'S PORTFOLIO instagram Parallel Realities by Catia >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.

18 >> 20 Elsa Arrais composed a simultaneously artistic, emotional, poetic and imagery portrait of her city in a predetermined period of time. 18 >> 20 October 18, 2023 INTERVIEW PHOTOGRAPHY Elsa Arrais INTERVIEW Karen Ghostlaw Pomarico Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link SHARE Elsa Arrais is a photographer living and creating impressive work in Leiria, Portugal. Born in Vila Nova de Famalicão, Elsa has become a beautiful thread in the tapestry of Portugal. With a background in Engineering, her attraction to visual arts emerged almost imperceptibly and gradually photography became her means of expression and artistic object. Elsa is married and the mother of two beautiful children, living and being inspired by the intricacies of the city of Leiria. Here Elsa has forged a path for her photography by embracing the artists and writers that bring life and character to Leiria in new and exciting ways. In 2021 began an important journey in photography contributing to the collaborative group Fotographar Palavras, and becoming an integral part of their project. Fotographar Palavras is a group founded by Paulo Kellerman, that combines the talent of writers and photographers, engaging them to collaborate on translating words into photography. Elsa shares her inspiration. “Since 2021, I have contributed to the Fotografar Palavras project, where I often search the self-portrait for the defining elements of meaning. With a predilection for minimalist black and white, my visual exploration is guided by local and temporal ephemera, transforming the peculiarities of the details that I find, in the streets I wander, into brief windows, fragments or reflections of memories and personal essences.” Despite all these years living in Leiria, Elsa never felt a real connection with the city. As a mother of two children, it can be hard to find time to call your own, to focus on what inspires you as an artist, and to commit to making the time to create work. These disconnections became the motivation for the photographic base concept of this project ‘18>>20’, which was conceived to embrace these challenges, and create meaningful work. Elsa shares the creative and critical thinking processes that helped her breathe life into her project and give it a powerful direction. “This project emerged with the intention of connecting me with the city and naturally with myself. The use of a 28mm lens served to reinforce this aim of proximity and intimacy with the city, both metaphorically and technically. From this reflection of my relationship with the city, capturing both details and subtleties as well as the city's identity marks, at the end of this project I came across a series of images that subtly lead to a city-shelter. This theme ended up being as personal as it was universal and will therefore serve as the basis for a cycle of reflective conversations developed in partnership with the municipality of Leiria, publisher of the book.” With critical thoughts and ideologies in place, the creative process becomes the focus. Elsa was driven to make the commitment to create this work in a meaningful way. “During one year, always at the same time of the day (between 18 and 20 o’clock), I wandered around the city and photographed Leiria freely. I created a collection of hundreds of images, composing a subtle and emotional portrait of the city, capturing details and subtleties, permanence and mutations, the subtle identity marks that define the soul of constructions and nature, of spaces, of people. From each weekly selected photograph by Paulo Kellerman, he created a brief text (amalgamation of fiction, philosophical reflection and poetic narrative) that offers new possibilities of reading for those images. The aim of this collaborative work (52 weeks, 52 photos, 52 texts) was to compose a simultaneously artistic, emotional, poetic and imagery portrait of the city in a predetermined period of time, in an intimate relationship between emotion and reflection, urbanism and privacy, collective and individual, space and time, image and word.” One can make a significant statement through their personal work, while sometimes the power can be amplified by combining artistic energy and vision from another artist to create an entity larger than oneself. This was the dynamic and inspiration for both artists to produce this relevant work together. Elsa explains the relationship between her and Paulo Kellerman, and how effective they have become at exchanging artistic concepts and visions through photography and word. “Fascinated by the various readings, interpretations and meanings that are normally attributed to my photographs by observers, already collaborating at the time in a project that combines literature and photography and being an avid supporter of multidisciplinary and interconnection of various artistic expressions, the partnership with the local writer Paulo Kellerman came naturally. Mutual respect and trust in individual works allowed us both to be free in the process of creating images and texts. And it was from this freedom, trust, interconnection of interpretations, individual complicities with the city and complicities between photographer and writer that a new vision as collective as personal was born, created week after week. This process culminated in the publication of a book where growth and discoveries are shared.” Paulo Kellerman shares his experience collaborating with Elsa on this project together. “The project 18 » 20 was an amazing creative experience, based on the complicity between writer and photographer. We had time for this project, and that was very important to us: to have the opportunity to think about and discuss the project, to experiment, to see how it slowly materialized. Elsa is very enthusiastic, very determined, very challenging, very cooperative, very generous; it was an enormous pleasure to work with her and I think it shows in the book. I'm very proud of the work we achieved and also of the way we did it, the process in itself. It was a perfect example of co-creation: sharing and creating together, harmonizing points of views and aesthetics, learning with the other, putting the best of each one in the pursuit of a common goal.” Elsa has created new pathways she follows through the streets of Leiria with her photography. She has embraced a philosophy and vision that inspires her to utilize photography in meaningful ways to create important work. As an artist and photographer, she works with clear vision, and an open mind to learn more and to be influenced in creating new ways of seeing and understanding the world around her. “We exist in a present where photography is as accessible as it is conditioned. Accessible to everyone at the touch of a cell phone but restricted in many contexts to those who want to use it in the shared space as a form of artistic expression. Based on this dichotomy, Elsa Arrais searches in the commonplace of everyday life for a voice that many times echoes beyond the expressiveness of a face; her search for notable physical expressions, as well as places' identity details, seeks to establish words capable of awakening emotions and imaginary (and imagery) interpretations in external observers, usually keeping the identity and intimacy of those portrayed intact. The result of this balance between technique, emotion and delicacy is the creation of an ambivalent language dictionary, as complex as it is simple, which oscillates between light and shadow, geometry and emptiness, being and its outer contour, the concrete and distortion; between what remains immutable and what continues under construction; between freedom and repression. As an existential metaphor, this dictionary continues its quest for permanent growth and mutation, in the hope that one day it will become extinct or transformed into a grammar that, complete in itself, forms part of the universal language of images of the present in which we exist. The present where photography is as accessible as it is conditioned, and therefore needs dictionaries.” The Pictorial List asked Elsa some questions about her as a photographer, and co-creator of project and book ‘18>>20’. “I truly aim for the viewer to be drawn into the city of Leiria and walk in it, along with us, having a temporal journey and identifying the subtleties we came across during the one year. I wish this work can make them question their own relationship with this city and with their home cities. And also hope that, amplified by Paulo Kellerman’s words, the viewer can get carried away by imagination and create their own stories and interpretations around the shared pictures projecting this skill to others' photos.” IN CONVERSATION WITH ELSA ARRAIS THE PICTORIAL LIST: Hello Elsa, thank you for your insight into your inspiring project. Tell our readers a little about yourself and the important role that photography has come to play in your life. ELSA ARRAIS: I come from a typical middle class Portuguese family. For as long as I can remember, photography has always been present in our lives. In my parents' house I could always find framed photographs on dressers and walls. I remember my father showing photo-slides of significant family moments, seeing organized family photo albums and, later, seeing my brother experimenting with slow shutter speed or printing his photographs in an improvised darkroom at my parents' house basement. I was about sixteen years old when my brother gave me my first camera, a film point and shoot, easy to use but with a significant dimension in my ability to immortalize moments. I suppose I've always had a part of me connected to the visual aspect of the world around me, but at that time I still couldn't recognize it. This legacy of keeping significant moments in the form of photography continued to accompany me over the years and with the birth of my first daughter it was amplified, challenging me to explore and improve the photographic technique. With the arrival of Covid-19, and with it the first lockdown, the impossibility of visiting my parents and them going out led me to document the small hygienic walks, with the aim of bringing them a little of the beauty of a world they were prevented from seeing. In the beginning, they were photographs of small details that captured my attention, but as people returned to their daily routines, I began to become interested in including the human figure in my images, finally discovering my interest in street photography. On this trip I met extraordinary people with common interests, who helped me shape the artistic path I have been following. Today I can no longer imagine going out without a camera and, although there are many moments when I go out objectively to photograph for projects, it is still in the most unexpected moments that I manage to see and find the most special images. TPL: How hard was it to devote a commitment of time to balance your creative work in photography and your love for your family and the unsurmountable work that can be 24/7. Do you think it is essential for women, or men that care for their families to make this time for themselves, and if so, why? EA: It is definitely essential for anyone to have the possibility of using time for themselves in order to maintain an inner balance that allows them to remain persistent, tolerant and kind towards those around them on a daily basis. On a personal note, it was precisely photography that allowed me to balance both worlds, hiding behind the camera and using it as a physical and emotional barrier to create brief moments of detachment from family routines, even while within them. TPL: How have you grown as a person from these two hours a day, as a photographer, as a mother, as a citizen of your community? How has your family grown from this experience? When I walk through the streets of the city of Leiria, I finally feel the sensation of knowing every corner and alleys. The streets now have names, images, many stories and questions associated with them. The city is no longer just a city, it has become mine, both through the moments spent there and through seeing and reviewing the images collected and the texts created by Paulo Kellerman for them. I now understand that to have a sense of belonging, even in the case of a city, personal openness and genuine dedication are necessary. In Portugal, the time range in which we developed the 18 » 20 project includes approximately seventy percent of the year twilight or night light, which means that as a photographer I was able to widely explore low-light environments. The fact that Leiria is a relatively small city forced me to pay extra attention in order to obtain original perspectives and images week after week, making it a demanding exercise that cuts across all my photographic explorations. I often jokingly say that eighty percent of my photographs were taken with someone saying they are hungry, thirsty or need to go to the bathroom, as my children often accompany me on my photographic explorations. This project was no exception. Even so, it was never an impediment to facing it with dedication and rigor, quite the contrary, it proved to be an exercise of patience and joint growth. They were part of my vision, sometimes within the photographs, sometimes forcing me to see what my adult vision often doesn't see. My children are also co-authors of the look that is reflected in the images I produce. Deeply grateful for their precious help, when I make these forays into the life of the city, I also hope to illuminate the path to the possibilities of personal expression and forms of artistic contribution to the community. Despite the reflection on my relationship with the city being something personal ended up proving to be universal. The municipality's interest in holding a cycle of conversations on the topic of Leiria city-shelter is clear evidence of the impact that this work had on the city management responsible and that it will certainly continue to happen on the Leiria community. TPL: Since your work on this project, have you made connections to communities you did not have before, if so, explain what they are and the value or difference they have made in the way you engage your community now. EA: Regardless of having connected myself to the city itself, being a shy person, I still feel that I haven't connected myself to the humans of Leiria community. Hopefully it may happen within the cycle of conversations. Despite this, it has led me to get involved in several different projects, where I have been using all the growing know-how from this project and making me take a next step into the photography world by talking and getting to know the local people. TPL: Can you tell our readers what collaboration and working on projects have done for you, and the importance of setting goals, and committing to achieving them. EA: For me, working on both individual and collective projects is a process of permanent learning. I always try to work on something meaningful, so it becomes intuitive to maintain focus and motivation, and the work flows naturally, especially on long-term projects. Challenging myself to step out of my comfort zone is also something I try to do with each project. This helps me to continue studying and exploring more about photographic techniques, other arts, places and people. When I deliberately challenge myself, I know I'm going to do something I've never done before, I overcome my mental barriers and technical knowledge, which usually results in truly rewarding meaningful images. Working objectively for projects, whether individual or collective, also helps me to establish visual priorities when I go out and to be methodical about categorizing the photographs that I regularly add to my image collection. However, for a project to come to fruition, a certain degree of commitment is always necessary, and the first step is to clearly establish the objectives and methodology. Nevertheless, the biggest benefit I derive from involvement in all projects is undoubtedly personal. They have been a beautiful way to rediscover myself and meet other people. 18 » 20 is a clear example of this and would not have been possible without the complicity created with Paulo Kellerman. Despite the reflection on my relationship with the city being something personal ended up proving to be universal. TPL: What is some advice you can share about working on projects, and working with other people? What are some of the challenges you have come across, and how did you address them? EA: As I mentioned previously, I like to see each project as a learning process. Coming from the science field, I am always aware that the mutation and evolution of objectives throughout the implementation of a project is part of the process. This is essential for work with more significant and better results but, above all, for us to be able to be motivated. From my experience, in transdisciplinary collective projects it is important to maintain flexible thinking, without too preconceived ideas so that we are open to new perspectives and able to adjust to the ideas that emerge from the collaborative environment. This flexibility helps us learn more from individual shares, creating the right environment so that everyone can be surprised by the best of their contribution. The biggest challenge I faced in collective projects was managing individual expectations. This happens mainly in projects that involve several people with equal decision-making power, which is why I emphasize the need not to idealize something too personal and concrete when joining a work group. As an example, I can mention a project in which I participate, and which involves thirteen people. Managing expectations regarding the materialization of the project has been somewhat delicate and the solution we found to speed up decisions was to work in an open manner, where the choices approved by the majority of participants are in force. It's not the perfect solution but it's respected by the entire group, and it works. TPL: If you could work with any photographer for a day, from any time period, who would that be and why? What would you want to learn from them? What would you like to share with them? EA: The history of photography is full of interesting people, with whom I would love to share a day with, so it is very difficult to answer this question in a few words. Having to choose, I will opt for some of the classics and first of all I have to say Josef Koudelka. I am fascinated by his images, by the intimate relationship he managed to create with the gypsy community, by the peculiar relationship he shows with architectural aspects, by the mix of rawness and poetry he achieves in each photograph, by his simpler and complex compositions. I would love to spend a day with Saul Leiter, in a way his magnificent compositions show a certain shyness, with which I particularly identify myself, giving them a touch of intimacy in both his color and black and white work. André Kertész would also be one of those chosen, as I really like the way he used distortions to create surrealist images, decontextualized objects and used small surprise elements in his compositions. The use of small format prints also makes all your work special. As we are speaking of the Masters of Photography, I am positive that if it would be possible, I would rather learn than share. TPL: You are heavily influenced by the written word, what are some of your favorite authors, what inspires you in their words? EA: I confess that a great influence on my way of observing comes from the fact that I am an avid consumer of children's literature. Over the last twelve years I have spent a lot of time collecting and reading stories with my children by authors such as Leo Lionni, Hervé Tullet, Oliver Jeffers, Eric Carle, Jimmy Liao or Ana Juan. In these illustrated books the dynamics of composition, light and color serve a text, often very graphical and minimal. On a page, an image and a sentence, sometimes just a word, sometimes just the image, say it all. And it is in this world of saying a lot with little that I move with my camera and try to portray life. Naturally, it is inevitable to talk about the written word and not think about Fotografar Palavras, as it is a project that keeps me connected with the most diverse authors and the most diverse literary expressions. Being mostly made up of Portuguese authors, Fotografar Palavras, in the form of its founder and coordinator Paulo Kellerman, permanently challenges me to give new meanings to my photographs or create unique images with the aim of significantly filling each line presented to me. Once this process begins, for me, any author or phrase can be the target of inspiration and it is extremely rewarding when the perfect words are found to describe an image and vice versa. TPL: Do you have any new projects you are working on that you can share with us? What is their inspiration? EA: I currently have several projects underway. Mostly collaborative and multidisciplinary, in general they encompass themes that I particularly identify with, such as different areas of artistic expression and relationships between people and spaces. For example, in one of the collaborative projects we are exploring critical areas of environmental value. With a theme that is both current and future, it is perhaps one of the most challenging projects I am involved in at the moment. TPL: Where do you see Elsa Arrais in the next five years, what do you hope to achieve, are there any long-term goals? EA: My path in photography has been very natural and spontaneous. My goals have come to life as opportunities arise, and I like that. But in general, I hope to continue meeting interesting and generous people who I can establish new bridges with, challenge myself, share work and complicities, continue to learn and carry out work with its own identity, interesting and meaningful. TPL: When you are not conquering Leiria with your camera, what would we find you enjoying? EA: When I'm not photographing you can find me playing with my children, dissecting photography books, visiting museums and art galleries (especially with my eldest daughter), listening to music, discovering new places and exploring old places. VIEW ELSA'S PORTFOLIO Elsa's Instagram >>> Fotografar Palavras website >>> read more interviews >>> THE ARCHITECTURE OF CONSCIOUSNESS Chad Coombs’ Polaroids are small psychological scenes where identity, memory, culture, and belief push against each other. WHERE WE BELONG Community storytelling lies at the heart of The Pictorial List’s mission, and Marlon Ramos’ photographs reflects the spirit of the place we now call home. GUIDED BY A WHISPER Guided by reflection and the quiet presence of art history, Isolda Fabregat Sanz makes photographs that resist certainty and invite the viewer to remain inside the act of looking. WHAT REMAINS, WHAT EMERGES Laetitia Heisler transforms risk, memory, and the body into layered analogue visions — feminist rituals of seeing that reveal what endures, and what quietly emerges beyond visibility. WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Culture lives where art and community meet, and in this space Alejandro Dávila’s photographs reveal the unseen labor and devotion that sustain creation. ANALOGICAL LIMBO Nicola Cappellari reminds us that the photograph’s power lies not in what it shows, but in what it leaves unsaid. THREADS OF MOROCCAN LIFE Through gestures of work and moments of community, Kat Puchowska reveals Morocco’s overlooked beauty. IT STARTED AS LIGHT…ENDED IN SHIVERS… Between intimacy and estrangement, Anton Bou’s photographs wander — restless fragments of light and shadow, mapping the fragile terrain where self unravels into sensation. WITH EYES THAT LISTEN AND A HEART THAT SEES For decades, Rivka Shifman Katvan has documented the unseen backstage world of Broadway, capturing authenticity where performance and humanity intersect. DIPTYCH DIALOGUES Through the beautiful language of diptychs, Taiwanese photographer Jay Hsu invites us into a world where quiet images speak of memory, resilience, and hope. UNKNOWN ABYSSINIA In Ethiopia, Sebastian Piatek found a new way of seeing — where architecture endures, but women in motion carry the narrative forward. THE PULSE OF THE STREET Moments vanish, yet Suvam Saha holds them still — the pulse of India’s streets captured in fragments of life that will never repeat. WHAT DO WE WANT? More than documentation, David Gray reveals the human pulse of resistance and asks us to see beyond the surface of unrest. CRACKED RIBS 2016 Cynthia Karalla opens up about the art of survival, the power of perspective, and why she believes each of us holds a monopoly on our own narrative. STREETS OF KOLKATA Ayanava Sil’s reveals Kolkata’s soul, capturing moments with empathy, presence and humility while offering deep insight into both city and self. PERIPHERAL PLACES A project by Catia Montagna that distills fleeting encounters and spatial poetics into triptychs - visual short stories that capture the in-between, where meaning often hides. POINTE-AU-CHIEN IS NOT DEAD Through Wayan Barre’s documentary, we are invited not only to see but to feel the lived realities of a community standing at the crossroads of environmental collapse and cultural survival. QUEER HAPPENED HERE Author Marc Zinaman sheds light on the valuable contributions that LGBTQ+ individuals have made to the cultural and social fabric of New York City. TRACES OF TIME Marked by an ongoing visual dialogue with time, memory, and impermanence, Zamin Jafarov’s long-term projects highlight the quiet power of observation and the emotional depth of simplicity. THERE MY LITTLE EYES Guillermo Franco’s book is an exploration of seeing beyond the obvious. His work invites us to embrace patience, curiosity, and the unexpected in a world that often rushes past the details. VISUAL HEALING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS Betty Goh’s photography exemplifies the transformative power of visual storytelling, where personal adversity becomes a canvas for resilience, illuminating the connection between art, healing, and self-reclamation. EVERYDAY BLACKNESS Parvathi Kumar’s book is a profound tribute to the resilience, and contributions of incredible Black women from all walks of life, making it a vital addition to the conversation around International Women’s Month. A VOYAGE TO DISCOVERY Fanja Hubers’ journey in photography is one of continuous exploration, balancing documentation with artistic self-reflection. MARCH FORWARD Through photography, Suzanne Phoenix creates a space for representation, recognition, and resistance — ensuring that the voices of women and gender-diverse people are seen, heard, and celebrated. FLUX: Exploring Form, Luminescence, and Motion Amy Newton-McConnel embraces unpredictability, finding structure within chaos and allowing light to guide the composition.