Description

Gueorgui Pinkhassov works instinctively and is led by a strong interest in light and colour, evident here in his picture of the Old City in Beijing in 1993. He is candid about his process, which is based entirely on inuition: “My work is pure improvisation, I am always very spontaneous. I refer to myself as a hunter…. I’m chasing light, and by looking for reflection I somehow can express my creativity.”

The only thing that counts is curiosity. For me personally, this is what creativity is about. It will express itself less in the fear of doing the same thing over again than in the desire not to go where one has already been

Gueorgui Pinkhassov
© Gueorgui Pinkhassov | Magnum Photos

Gueorgui Pinkhassov was born in Moscow in 1952 and his interest in photography began while he was still at school. After studying cinematography at the VGIK (The Moscow Institute of Cinematography), he went on to work at the Mosfilm studio and then as a set photographer.

In 1978, Pinkhassov joined the Moscow Union of Graphic Arts and obtained the status of an independent artist. His work was noticed by the prominent Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky, who invited Pinkhassov to the set to make a reportage about his film Stalker(1979).

Pinkhassov moved permanently to Paris in 1985 and joined Magnum Photos three years later. He works regularly for the international press, particularly for Geo, Actuel and The New York Times Magazine. His book, Sightwalk, explores individual details, through reflections or particular kinds of light, often approaching abstraction.

© Gueorgui Pinkhassov | Magnum Photos

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