Written by Katarina Jansdottir

Austrian photographer Hanna Putz has a clean realness to her work. Mainly photographing friends, she finds importance in communication and understanding between her and the subject. The result is a relaxed presence where the models look calm and undisturbed in the presence of her camera.

Putz, who is self-taught, got into photography through modelling and has besides personal projects also done fashion photography. In her editorial work she has a candid approach to the clothes, putting them in second place to the model. Her aim is not to objectively represent reality, but rather freeze moments in her own life. Giving her subjects the freedom of choosing poses and how to convey themselves, she explores identity in a way similar to that of portrait artist Rineke Dijkstra. Her images capture the beauty of friendship and intimacy in a touching way. At the Hyères International Festival of Fashion and Photography in April, Putz was chosen as one of ten photography finalists. Now based in London, she has recently participated in the exhibitions ‘Wald’ at Pavlov’s Dog Gallery in Berlin and ‘No Fashion, Please!’ at the Vienna Kunsthalle.