Polish born photographer Rita Zimmermann’s passion for art was inspired by her mother who is a painter, architect and interior designer. She was her initial inspiration and still inspires her today. Rita grew up in a house full of art.
“We talked about art while listening to John Coltrane, Edith Piaf, and reading poetry of Agnieszka Osiecka. I guess I was destined to become an artist”
Her work today is inspired by people’s feelings and events which permanently change the way we look at the world. There are three important words in photography - art, intellect and glamour, but the last one has nothing to do with money.
“Looking at my photographs, even though I’m not the model, my works represent my feelings and emotions. If I had to mention artists, movies, art, etc which strongly influenced my work, it would be the Rome of Fellini, film production by Lynch, Bergman, Matthew Barney’s Cremaster Cycle, Sylvia Plath’s poetry, and finally photography of Diane Arbus, Francesca Woodman and the masters such as Helmut Newton, Peter Lindbergh, Paolo Roversi - I’ve fallen in love in black and white”
“I love to photograph people in their natural environment, then I can easily catch what I’m searching for -the moment, when model forgets that they are being photographed”
Rita got her first Fisher Price camera when she was 5, and she absolutely fall in love with photography: “-I started taking pictures professionally during my 2 years in London. I took a photography class in Brighton, then I spent many hours in the London Underground traveling from station to station with my first professional manual camera.”
Rita studied Painting and Media at the Academy of Fine Arts while at the same time working as a stylist for the Polish edition of Elle. She also spent time as a booker, working for the best polish model agency - Model Plus. She has been working for the last 8 years as a freelance photographer, and has worked with magazines such as Elle, A4, and Malemen, where she currently owns the project-Before 9 (naked women, before 9am).
Now she’s in NYC evaluating photography agencies with an intention to remain in NYC, while also preparing 2 separate photo projects one involving “Wicked wives” while the other “Beds”. She is also working on her next painting and video art exhibition.
Here’s some of her work:
Check out her blog here.
