Nationality Estonian Occupation Photographer | Name Birgit Puve | |
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Born November 7, 1978 (age 46) ( 1978-11-07 ) Known for By The Lake, Estonian Documents | ||
Birgit Püve (born November 7, 1978) is an Estonian photographer. She lives and works in Tallinn.
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Life and work
Birgit Püve started out as a writing journalist for the Estonian weekly newspaper Eesti Ekspress. She quickly became a successful writer, winning several reputable awards. Yet, her love for photography led her to replace words with images. Besides her personal projects, she now works as a freelance photographer and photo editor.
Püve concentrates mostly on portrait photography and the presentation of human nature. With her widely acclaimed series By The Lake she portrays the silent and dignified world of the Russian Old Believers living in the culturally unique part of Estonia, on the shores of Lake Peipus, the biggest transboundary lake in Europe, which now separates two different worlds - European Union and Russian Federation. By The Lake consists of poetic diptychs of people and their private environments.
She is currently working on her next project Estonian Documents. As a native Estonian she explores Estonian faces with an aim to portray the little Eastern European nation as a whole. Through the portraits of known and unknown Estonians she aims to treasure the psychological state of one Post-Soviet country in the 21st century.
Birgit Püve's work has been shown in exhibitions in Estonia, Latvia, Russia, France, UK, United States, Canada, Austria, Germany, Poland.
Recognition
Photo District News (PDN) Photo Annual 2011, USA. Winner in the category Personal with the series By The Lake.
Spectrum Emerging Talent 2012 of The Sunday Times Magazine, UK. With the ongoing series Estonian Documents.
First Prize in Portrait category of the Estonian Press Photo 2012 contest with the series of staged portraits called Estonian Future Stars 2013 for the special edition of cultural supplement of Eesti Ekspress. First Prize in Portrait category of the Estonian Press Photo 2013 contest with the series of staged portraits of Estonian twins and triplets for the book project Double Matters (Elada mitmuses) by Hea Lugu Publishers.
Third Prize at the Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize 2014 organized by The National Portrait Gallery in London.
Collections
Püve's works are held in the Estonian Theatre and Music Museum collection and private collections in Estonia, Finland, Germany, UK, United States.