5 Fine Art Photographers Reveal Their Sources for Inspiration

5 Fine Art Photographers Reveal Their Sources for Inspiration

Earlier this year we launched The List – a selection of 90 finalists from our 80,000+ community of PhotoShelter members, chosen by a panel of independent judges. This week we are highlighting all five of the fine art photographers from The List. Each of them shared with us their sources for inspiration as well as some of their favorite photo series. If you’re a photographer looking for inspiration or a brand looking to hire for your next photo project, check out their beautiful work below as well as their features on PhotoShelter’s Instagram this week.

Feature photo by Dane Shitagi.

 

Katharina Bosse

Primary location: Bielefeld, Germany
Instagram | Twitter

“I have a unique style evident in the use of color and composition, and I am good at finding the right location for a storytelling portrait. I have years of experience as an artist and editorial photographer, and have worked for big clients like the New Yorker and the New York Times Magazine.”

Where do you find inspiration for your work?
“I am inspired by photography that addresses changes in society around themes that can be conveyed through the body, like gender, motherhood and diversity. I am also interested in color and rhythm, and using a unique visual style.

My work also has an element of reflection on the media and photographic processes used to create each series. As Freeman Patterson once said, “The camera photographs both ways.”

Photo by Katharina Bosse

Photo by Katharina Bosse

Photo by Katharina Bosse

Giannina Urmeneta Ottiker

Primary location: Lovendegem, Belgium

“I have been working as an artist participating in many exhibitions, projects and publications for the last 20 years. I now work as a freelance photographer mostly for the cultural sector and the theater world. Photography is not only my job, it is my passion and one of my biggest drives in life.”

Where do you find inspiration for your work?
“My photographs are a tribute to seemingly unmemorable moments. They are like delicate membranes carefully removed from reality, and they demand slow observation just like a painting. They depict different levels of silence from everyday life.

Many of the most memorable moments of my life have been accompanied by the discovery of new artists and their incredible work. For example, the intensity of Rothko’s paintings, the thought-provoking work of Marlene Dumas, the portraits of Van Eyck, Sophie Calle’s voyeuristic work, the sculptures and installations of Mark Manders, the drawings of Johan de Wilde, the intimate connections in Nan Goldin’s photographs, the everyday still life’s of Wolfgang Tillmans, the tones of grey and texture in Dirk Braeckman’s work, Todd Hido’s mysterious atmospheres, Hiroshi Sugimoto’s game of fiction, Jeanette Winterson’s books, Martin Chambi’s authenticity, William Klein, Maira Kalman, Larry Sultan, and so many more have greatly affected me and enriched my visual language. It is a very long list of visual artists, writers, performers and dancers that have helped me find my own voice.”

Photo by Giannina Urmeneta Ottiker

Photo by Giannina Urmeneta Ottiker

Photo by Giannina Urmeneta Ottiker

Photo by Giannina Urmeneta Ottiker

Inga Lisa Middleton

Primary location: London, UK
Instagram | Twitter

“My Cyanotype prints, where the subject matter is mainly natural artifacts, have both a nostalgic and graphic quality. Some of the images have already been licensed for an album cover, for hotel rooms, for the crockery on a yacht, and a well known ‘cruise liner’ is considering commissioning a special series.”

Where do you find inspiration for your work?
“I am increasingly inspired by the beauty of nature and intricate natural forms. Perhaps living in a large city makes me crave the tranquility of nature, and it makes me aware of how important it is to preserve it. I am currently working on two other projects: Icebergs and Underwater Wonders.”

Photo by Inga Lisa Middleton

Photo by Inga Lisa Middleton

 

Olivier Du Tré

Primary location: Calgary, AB
Twitter  |  Facebook

“My images are not so much about a place as they are about representing a feeling, a whisper, an impression, perhaps even existence itself. Although most photographers have fully embraced the digital age, my work continues to use traditional photographic methods.”

Where do you find inspiration for your work?
“Where does my inspiration come from? What inspires me? Here is the shocking answer: most of the time, I am not inspired at all.

Inspiration for me is closely related to motivation. If there is no motivation, then there is no inspiration. As a photographer I just have to get out there and photograph, trusting the process and knowing inspiration will come when it is meant to, no matter what mood or mindset I bring. Sometimes inspiration does come, but more frequently it doesn’t. I had to learn to be okay with this. I had to realize that this is just how I work, and maybe, this is just how life works. Life asks us to be patient and to trust the process with enough certainty to keep doing the work upon which inspiration depends.”

Photo by Olivier Du Tré

Photo by Olivier Du Tré

 

Dane Shitagi

Primary location: Calgary, Aberta, Canada
Instagram  |  Twitter  |  Facebook  |  Tumblr

“I have developed the Ballerina Project over the last 18 years photographing professional ballerinas from around the world. With the prodigious library of over 3,000 images I have created a substantial social media following of over 1.1 million followers on Instagram and 800,000 followers on Facebook.”

Where do you find inspiration for your work?
“I am inspired by artists from other art forms. It is important when photographing another art form such as ballet to be very conscience and respectful of its tradition and practice. Working with true ballerinas and cultivating an understanding of ballet and how to photograph this art form is the foundation of this body of work.”

Photo by Dane Shitagi

Photo by Dane Shitagi

 

Check out our Instagram for more beautiful shots from these photographers and the blog for more highlights from other members of The List.

 

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There is 1 comment for this article
  1. flexible fotography at 2:54 pm

    thank you THANK YOU Oliver DuTre for finally saying what i, and i am sure many other photographers, think about these obtuse artistic statements that we are forced to create. of course we are inspired by natural beauty, by other art-forms, and by social issues.

    most of the time, i wander looking for subjects, objects, or situations to give the creative inspiration for a picture. then, it’s on to the next unconnected inspiration. raise your hand if you too have this.

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