Our Artists
Jack Waterlot
Jack Waterlot was born in Paris with the arts embedded in his DNA. Jack’s acclaimed Cinematic Set Designer father and prominent painter mother set the path for a life focused on all things visual. At a very young age Jack began capturing the beauty of people, places and their cultures throughout the world as he traveled with his family. During his teens this growing passion for photography organically lead to an introduction to fashion while living in the one of the world’s hubs for design, Paris. This culture of couture and talent has made Jack one of the youngest and most sought after contemporary fashion photographers. Now Jack is residing in New York City.
In this video we interviewed Jack on his iconic works and creative process.
Steffen Mumm
The artist Steffen “Hoker” Mumm lives and works in Düsseldorf. His distinctive style is a combination of graffiti, calligraphy, illustration and painting, which he has explored in various media and materials over many years in an experimental approach. With each brushstroke, each spray-painted line, each sculpted object, he not only explores his own identity and personal growth, but also invites viewers to engage with the various facets of being human. Trademark objects are the “Heads,” which he has focused on in recent years. Their tension and emotionality arise from the fact that the artist creates them as intuitively and spontaneously as he does with attention to detail and technical precision. The heads and their expression are individual and at the same time subordinated to a unifying system. They are as multi-layered as human existence. Hoker’s artworks invite us to dive into ourselves and discover the inner core that connects us all.
MANNBUTTE
Mann is a fashion photographer and a film director based in Dubai. His work has been published and exhibited in acclaimed magazines & books worldwide. He is known for his warm tones, modern & sophisticated style, sometimes breaking into quirky edgy portraiture work; seen in British Vogue, Vogue Arabia, Numero, Harper’s Bazaar, Schon Magazine, Stylist Magazine, Grazia & many others. His campaign work for young and upcoming designers have a sense of depth helping them to express and create their own identity. He has worked with some of the leading brands: Chanel, Gucci, Loui Vuitton, Dior, Valentino, Bottega Venetta, Celine, Lanvin & many more. Mann has worked with known celebrities such as Rita Ora, Adut Akech, Ruth Not May, Myriam Fares, Younis Bendija, Huda Kattan and many others.
Travis Matthews
Travis Matthews is a New York-based fashion and portrait photographer. Originally from Georgetown, Guyana, he moved to the United States when he was seven. As a self-taught photographer, it inspired him to be versatile, original, innovative and creative in his craft. Travis is particularly interested in photographing black women. In a world with so many preconceived notions associated with the image of a black woman, he has made it his mission to photograph black women in their original and natural states. Aside from his exceptional technique, Travis ensures that the concept behind each image is raw, emotional and inspirational. Travis lives by the motto “Create to Inspire” and through his creativity, he will spark someone else’s creativity. He is creating a positive, creative energy cycle the he knows has the potential to change the world.
Vincent Junier
Born in 1964 and inspired by his friend’s father —a still life photographer— Vincent starts practicing photography very early at the age of 17. During several years he specializes in portrait and still life photography for press and magazines. In 1993 he decides to pursue a new path: switching to graphic design within the press industry and, later-on, further elaborating his conceptual skills as a creative director for communication agencies. For the past 5 years, he finally decides to come back to his first passion — still life photography. By developing ways to play with the lighting and his unique ability for proportions and compositions, Vincent turns whatever he captures through his lens into a desirable object. As a self-taught photographer, most of his qualities derive from not being constrained by school-taught rules. His work combines artistic simplicity and fresh aesthetic, often with a touch of oddness.
Mimo Khair
Mimo Khair is an American/Lebanese artist currently living in Germany. Mimo was born in Lebanon and migrated at a young age to New York City where she began pursuing her artistic journey. Mimo is a photographer, photo artist and motion designer creating short animations in 2d and 3d. She has been exhibited and published worldwide and is most well known for her portraits of child refugees from Syria, street children from Cambodia, Kinshasa and child soldiers from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda.
In this book project Solo, Mimo explores the concept of being alone as a creative state of mind. She is haunted by the feeling she gets from seeing a lone person in the middle of an overpopulated planet surrounded by architecture, nature, an empty road, a desert or a piece of art.
Andreea Mitran
Andreea Mitran is a photographer and a visual storyteller based in Bucharest, Romania (though deep down inside, she considers Italy’s Mediterranean Coasts as a second home).
She was always fascinated by the concept of making fading moments of the natural, unscripted beauty (be it of human or natural kind) last forever, in the form of photographs. Her vision is always influenced by all elements that compose the context in which she creates, which is why her approach to the act of creating is never the same.
Her form of expression through photography is in constant bloom, in conjunction with her self-growth as a woman, a motive that is mirrored in her work. Portraiture is her preferred genre, but you will never encounter portraiture works that lack a heartfelt tribute to nature, daylight, and human emotion. At the conjunction of these elements, lies her vision on photography.
Mira Nedyalkova
Mira Nedyalkova is a Bulgarian visual artist best known for her underwater and erotic photography. Nedyalkova was born in Sofia, Bulgaria, she received her degree from the National Academy of Arts in Sofia. Around 2012 Nedyalkova started doing mostly water and underwater shots. This type of fine-art photography was not yet mainstream, and Nedyalkova’s imaginative surreal concepts caught the attention of the art scene, which lead to her works being published in international art magazines, book and album covers.
Traci Martin
Traci Wright Martin is an award-winning charcoal and mixed media artist residing in the U.S. in Greenville, South Carolina. Her work is featured in a number of prestigious art magazines and publications and has been acquired by private and public collectors, both internationally and throughout the U.S. A selection of her original pieces have been curated into the Lunar Codex, a series of permanent time capsules to reside permanently on the moon. The project houses an archive of thousands of works representing artists around the world.
The overall narrative in Martin’s portrait and figurative work addresses the philosophical layers of representation and exploration, weaving contemporary realism with abstract design elements. Her pioneering approach to mixed media utilizes charcoal as the foundation and brings in endless combinations of paint, patterned paper collage and other experimental techniques to the finished design.
Nassia Stouraiti
Nassia Stouraiti is a Greek photographer born in 1998. She’s currently located in Athens. She studied Law at the National Kapodistrian University of Athens and has a minor degree in Communication. At the age of nine she started taking photos and in 2010 she had her first individual exhibition of photography in Rhodes. During her school years, two more exhibitions followed, in 2012 and 2016, both located in Rhodes, Greece. On November 2021, Nassia participated in the international exhibition of “Image Nation Paris” in Paris, France, that took place in the “Galerie Joseph Turenne”. One of her self-portraits was chosen as the main poster of the exhibition. Following Paris, she was invited, this year 2023, by the same host, to participate in the international exhibition in New York, USA, that took place in the oldest gallery of New York, “Soho Photo Gallery” in Soho, New York.
Fifty of her photos have been accepted in the VOGUE Italia’s archive known as “Photo Vogue”. She has also worked with brands such as Adidas and Yves Saint Laurent and her photography was in the pages of several magazines including “VOGUE Greece” and “Instyle Greece”. Finally, a self portrait of hers has become the cover of a literature book published by “Harpers Collins Germany”.
Nina Nayko
I was born in a small country Georgia. I discovered my love for photography when I was 13 years old, I noticed that I was seeing the world differently than people around me. I was always subconsciously observing my surroundings and finding something meaningful in even very simple and sometimes boring reality. I wanted others to see what I see and to feel what I feel, so I started capturing each special moment and sharing it to others. My photography is about observing surroundings, wherever I am, I’m looking for compositions and getting the positive energy, or just a special feeling from them. I love capturing beauty of the nature, and the mood and atmosphere of my city Tbilisi. With my photography I want to teach others to see the world like I do, to find happiness in the simplicity, not only the beauty of nature, but also the gray concrete cities some of us live in.
Petra Gerwers
„Schon mit 9 Jahren hatte Petra Gerwers ihre erste Kamera und seitdem hat sie gespürt, dass ihr das Medium Fotografie etwas ganz Außerordentliches bieten kann: einen unmittelbaren Dialog mit der sie umgebenden Welt ohne das Gesehene einer begrifflichen Logik unterordnen zu müssen. Vertrauend auf einer intuitiven Wahrnehmung entwickelt sie in verschiedenen fotografischen Projekten eine sehr persönliche, subjektive Bildsprache. So ist ihre Serie Applause to Life aus dem Jahr 2019 eine Hymne an das Leben. Wechselnde Perspektiven und Formate fügen sich in einer dynamischen Bildsequenz auf farbigen Hintergründen zu einem psychedelisch wirkenden Roadtrip zusammen. Mythos und Realität, Erdung und Überhöhung ringen in einem visuellen Sog permanent miteinander. Dabei entsteht eine rauschhafte Wahrnehmung der Welt, die aber bei einem zweiten Blick auch eine reflexive Betrachtung möglich macht. Die oft skurril wirkenden Kombinationen von kuriosen Einblicken in zeitgenössisches Leben evozieren eine neugierige Hinterfragung. Die glückliche Verschmelzung von Pathos und Ironie feiert das Leben ohne dabei einer unkritischen Idealisierung zu verfallen. Die Fotografie spielte für Petra Gerwers auch bei ihrer früheren Arbeit als Fachlehrerin für geistig- und körperbehinderte Kinder eine wichtige Rolle. Dieses Medium kann für sie am besten ihre Passion befriedigen, Verbindungen zu Menschen herzustellen und diese wiederum mit anderen Menschen zusammenzubringen. Kommunikation bildet das zentrale Motiv ihres Handelns und das ist auch die Grundlage für ihr Fotoprojekt „Zeitreisende”, bei dem sie Menschen eine Plattform gibt, eine Stimme und Sichtbarkeit. Wesentlich bei ihrer Portraitfotografie ist dabei, dass sie kein eindeutiges Bild ihrer Protagonist*innen schaffen will. In fotografischen Aufnahmen mit vielschichtigen Spiegelungen werden die Menschen von einer statischen Repräsentanz ihrer Persönlichkeit befreit und erlauben einen Blick hinter die Fassade. Die Kombination der entstandenen Porträts mit Kinderbildern der Abgebildeten und Briefen, die diese an sich selbst als Kind schreiben, verdeutlicht das Kerninteresse der Fotografin, mit einem neugierigen Blick auf die Welt diese nicht anhalten zu wollen, sondern in allem Beziehungsgeflechte zu sehen, die in einem lebendigen Prozess einer ständigen Wandlung unterworfen sind.”
Text von Wolfgang Zurborn
Shigenari Kimura
Shigenari Kimura Born on November 15, 1979. Born in Hiroshima, Japan. After 10 years of working as an undergrad, he established Legare in 2011. He also started to use a camera during this period. Established L.D.S (Legare. Design. Shooting) in 2013. In 2020, he will open his second Emma salon, and in 2022, his third Emma ol (Emma e). She is active in a wide range of activities, including lecturing as a beauty technician and working as a photographer.
Mara Troeger
Mara Troeger, 36, born in Düsseldorf with French-Guyanese heritage, is a photographic artist who has established herself as an artist in Düsseldorf since 2013.
As a master of black-and-white photography, she imparts timeless elegance to portraits, capturing not only the external appearance of the depicted individuals but also their internal stories and emotions.
With her remarkable sensitivity to light and shadow, she creates a play of contrasts that is not only visually appealing but also establishes an atmosphere of intimacy and authenticity.
Her works are characterized by an extraordinary artistic vision.
Troeger employs her art to engage with socio-critical issues. Her works often represent a powerful combination of visual aesthetics and profound messages. She uses photography and conceptual art as a means to draw attention to social injustices, discrimination, and prejudices.
Her works serve as a call for reflection and dialogue on important social issues that are often overlooked or ignored.
Neil Dankoff
Neil Dankoff is a Film & Communications graduate from McGill University. Neil started displaying his limited edition photographs with the prestigious Lonsdale Gallery back in 2009. The gallery promoted large solo shows of Neil’s work for the next 5 years. In 2015, Neil opened his first gallery in Montreal. The following year Dankoff was chosen for a project that would result in the largest fine art photography commission in Canadian history. Dankoff traveled the globe for three years to complete the commission of 800 original photos for Hotel X Toronto.
Marcus Cederberg
Marcus Cederberg is a minimalist photographer from Sweden. Channelling a sense of calm, Marcus Cederberg translates society’s intrinsic need for a slower pace into minimalist photographs. The Swedish artist’s outlook on life is thereby converted into colours, contrasts, and negative space.
Leonardo Condor
Leonardo Cóndor is an Ecuadorian artist, based in Mallorca. He is a self-taught photographer who, since he was a child, has had a passion for art and drawing, especially pencil sketches. The artist likes to improvise and let the personality of each model flow. He opts for artistic nudes, especially in black and white, because for him it represents the strength and beauty of the human body. He focuses mainly on the female body, which expresses the elegance and purity of nature. Leonardo’s photographs create a visual impact while being both elegant and subtle, always trying to immerse the viewer in the instant of the photograph. Without being influenced by the canons of technical photography, he feels free to create and try to go beyond the ordinary. He likes aesthetics, symmetry, minimalism, black and white and tries to capture these concepts in his work.
Wolfgang Sohn
Wolfgang Sohn is a Düsseldorf based photographer, photo artist, curator, lecturer and moderator of the Düsseldorf Kulturtalk. Versatility characterizes his work. A magazine once headlined him as ‘Building bridges with photos’, because Sohn is also founder and creative director of an international fair for contemporary photography and brings people together through photo art.
In his photographic work, too, he has devoted himself primarily to photo art since 2010. This has resulted in series from New York and India, Myanmar and other Asian countries with a focus on portraiture and visibility of people.
Sohn presented his works in many solo and group exhibitions.