LE MARAIS

LE MARAIS Le Marais is a neighborhood of Paris on the right bank of the Seine. This neighborhood in the center of town literally radiates old-world charm - no wonder it is often called Old Paris. Le Marais is a real labyrinth of cobblestone streets, hidden courtyards, contemporary art galleries and ivy-twined cafes and restaurants. Back in the day, the tone in Le Marais was set by the thriving Jewish community, now, it is replaced by Parisian sexual minorities, who sustain their fashionable neighborhood in model order. I roamed this animated neighborhood, meeting people that aesthetically caught my eye, and asked to photograph them. In this series of male portraits I strive to capture the charm of Le Marais inhabitants. The question is, does the marvelous environment of Le Marais attract such personalities or do these people soak in the unlimited wonder this place has to offer in order to become who they are. We may never know the answer, but one thing is for sure these people are truly beautiful and unique.

Olesya was born in Cherrpovets, Russia, she started photography while in secondary school. During the weekends she worked in a private print company in which she printed both color and black and white photographs by hand for clients as well as professionals. She worked as a printing technician for 6 years during which she learned all the mini labs (digital printing machines) as well as hand labs. After this she worked as a digital lab engineer for a year. During this period she began photographing herself and having her first clients. She decided to dedicate herself solely to photography . She ended her printing career and for two years worked as manager of a photography studio chain at the same time developing her photography skills. Next she opened her own photography studio and began attending workshops of world famous photographers. This helped her in her search for my her own direction in photography - genre portraits. The next step for Olesya was obtaining a maters in photography from SPEOS. Now she lives in Paris and works worldwide. Olesya strives to work with people and characters. To conceive an image, an idea, for a specific person and then create it. Her portraits show a glimpse of what is hidden, they show the face of the person that one does not usually see: "I try to create dramatic portraits that are at the same time poetic. Every character in my universe has their own drama, and every portrait is my own portrait too."