Yana Paskova
"Receiving the Leica award immediately meant a greater reach for work I care to do, and greater means and motivation to complete it. Our in-person exhibits and talks just pre-pandemic, in addition to their digital counterparts post, have formulated thought and creativity that connects us with the photographic community on a practical basis, as well as engendered far subtler growth in our ability to reflect on our careers so far and their future direction."
Q. Since the announcement of our 2019 Leica Women Foto Project awardees, how has that impacted your photographic journey so far?
A. Receiving the Leica award immediately meant a greater reach for work I care to do, and greater means and motivation to complete it. It isn’t just financially that you are bolstered, but also emotionally, emotion being a subconscious or intentional part of the dedication we invest into our projects. Our in-person exhibits and talks just pre-pandemic, in addition to their digital counterparts post, have formulated thought and creativity that connects us with the photographic community on a practical basis, as well as engendered far subtler growth in our ability to reflect on our careers so far and their future direction. In short, it’s been beneficial (especially to the innately individualistic quality of freelance work) to suddenly feel at home within a niche community of talented creators.
Q. Describe how you use the Leica Q2 as a tool for your work.
A. The Q2 allows me to engage with other people in a less obtrusive manner, as it is small, light, extremely quiet in its natural 28 mm state, but also stays small, light and quiet as I ask it for a variety in distance and perspective, through its digital zoom features. What’s more, since I like my photos to mimic what my eyes see, that its pictures manifest nearly as crisp in color and focus as the world they represent, is of course the Q2’s greatest draw. This is because when a camera seamlessly rivals the inimitable quality of real life, I can focus on the art of technique and ingenuity in creating imagery, instead of worrying about its invisible technical aspects.
Q. How have you used the funds to support your photographic series?
A. Originally, I aimed to use the funds to continue some of my travels for my series on all-female communities, but as the pandemic beset the world with unimaginable health risks from sharing space and travel, I’ve of course had to revise. Although those journeys still might happen in the future when it is safe to do so, for now, I’ve been using the funds to continue doing research and ideating on the continuation of my project, in place for the time I would have engaged in paid assignment or personal work and travel, both of which have now become exponentially more dangerous to all involved. This has given me the flexibility and space to more comfortably expand the foundation of all great projects: knowledge and imagination.
Q. What advice do you have for photographers who are in the process (or are interested) of developing their own series or personal project?
A. Absolutely always follow the passions of your instincts, for a story is never better told than when you truly want to tell it, but be certain the expression of your interests stays grounded in our ever-evolving understanding of what it means to enter a community that may not be your own, and tell their story in a way that respects not just your vision, but also their actuality. This takes as much preparedness of intellect as it does of empathy and communication, and I’d add, an active suppression of the self-import photojournalism has unfortunately at times dragged into doing its work.
Q. What is your vision for the Leica Women Foto Project?
A. My vision for this grant is that it betters my life and that of other women via the work it encourages me to do and the reach it allows for both visuals and words, to an audience hopefully committed to change. For my particular project, on matriarchal and all-female societies across the world, this would mean weakening a reliance on gender norms that have so far built a global society that is physically, emotionally and financially inequitable to women, and bolstering belief and ability within female communities and women as individuals (and their allies) to fight for equality, for themselves and us all. This, of course, is a personal battle as a female freelancer in a still largely male-dominated field, as well as one of principle, especially since this pandemic has reminded us the most vulnerable in it remain women and people of color. So the further society as a whole delineates itself from norms that benefit only those select few in power, the closer we are to eradicating the many plagues of inequality.