Female Voices in Art: Mary Gelman, Visual artist/Photojournalist

Mary Gelman (b. 1994, Penza, Russia) is a visual artist/photojournalist and a VII Photo Agency member based in Saint-Petersburg, Russia. In 2016 she graduated from Docdocdoc, School of Modern Photography in St. Petersburg and was a participant in various international and local workshops. Mary works as a photojournalist and teacher. The most important part of her professional life consists of personal projects. In the projects she has a strong personal approach to documentary and conceptual practices. Mary focuses on issues of gender and body, boundary and identity, discrimination and the human relationship with the environment. Mary is the recipient of several awards including The Leica Oskar Barnack Award Newcomer 2018, the first place in the 77th annual Pictures of the Year competition’s portrait category, Portraits - Hellerau Photography Award (Residence award), and in 2020 she won the third prize (series) in the portrait category of the Andrei Stenin International Photo Contest. In 2020 Mary has been selected for the prestigious Joop Swart Masterclass.

Could you tell us something about your role in the art world?

I am a visual artist, photojournalist and teacher from Russia.

What did you enjoy about being a part of this project?

I enjoyed of the process of taking the picture.

Do you have a favourite artist?

I don’t like to put artists in a specific order.

What is your earliest memory involving art?

I started as a street photographer, and I took a lot of pictures every day. Once I was on a market in my native city and took pictures of birds. It was quite nice geometry and so on. And after some time, the security guy took me to a secret place and threatened to break my camera if I wouldn't delete this picture. He said that it is a private place, but I did not see any symbols about that. It was such a confusing situation, and it was my first time when I lost a picture.

Do you have any special thoughts about the position of women in the art world?

Despite the fact that the art world has become more gender-balanced, there is discrimination of women and there are a lot of gender stereotypes. I guess we should pay more attention to discrimination and not be silent.

What are you wearing and holding, and are there stories behind it?

I was wearing my T-shirt and jeans. On these shirts original quotes have been printed from students of the ‘Anton is here’ center, which helps adults with autism.

What impact has the current health crisis on your daily practice?

It has had no impact.

Is it changing your views on Art?

No.