Rebecca Lilith Bathory
| Rebecca Bathory | |
|---|---|
 Bathory (holding an MPP Microcord camera) | |
| Born |
Sutton, Surrey, United Kingdom |
| Nationality | British |
| Education | London College of Fashion |
| Occupation | Photographer |
| Title | Miss |
| Website | rebeccabathory.com |
Rebecca Lilith Bathory (born May 1982) is a British photographer, living in London. As Rebecca Litchfield, she is known for her series Soviet Ghosts.[1][2][3][4]
Early life and education
Bathory was born in Sutton, in Surrey, England. May 1, 1982. She graduated from University for the Creative Arts with a first class degree in Graphic Design in June 2006. Between 2008 and 2010 she studied for a master's degree in Fashion Photography at The London College of Fashion, for which she was awarded a distinction. She exhibited her final masters project, Edenias, at London's Mall Gallery.[5]
In 2014 she was awarded a Techne scholarship for a research PhD degree at the University of Roehampton to research the photography of dark tourism.
Soviet Ghosts
Struck by the extent of abandonment in the former Soviet Union and what had been its satellite states, Bathory (as Rebecca Litchfield) records many abandoned locations within 10 countries, such as forgotten towns, factories, prisons, schools, monuments, hospitals, theatres, military complexes, asylums and death camps, not seen to most people who pass their boarded windows and fenced walls. These locations are imbued with a wealth of meaning and wonder and a history of their own. Bathory’s work shines a light on a society shrouded by the cold war, offering a unique and touching document of the daily lives of the Soviet people.
Bathory's photographs show these forgotten historical locations and the ideologies that built them, and try to reawaken old narratives, find beauty and meaning in their decay and revive the memories ingrained in the detritus of a collapsed regime. The buildings will soon disappear, and as the memory of the former Soviet Union begins to fade, these places and the communities who once gave them life deserve to be recorded for posterity. They tell a story like artefacts in a museum. The book Soviet Ghosts (published in June 2014 by Carpet Bombing Culture) catches a strange interval between modernity and antiquity.[6]
Exhibition
Awards
- 2009: Professional Photographer of the Year 2009 Overall Winner, Professional Photographer magazine.[8]
- 2009: Fashion category winner, Professional Photographer of The Year 2009, Professional Photographer magazine.[8]
- 2014: Clapham Art Prize Winner. Clapham Art Prize award.[9]
References
- ↑ Rebecca Litchfield, "Soviet ghosts: An empire in decay - in pictures", The Guardian, 10 July 2014. Accessed 20 August 2014.
- ↑ Joseph Flaherty, "Creepy photos of crumbling Soviet-era architecture", Wired, 5 August 2014. Accessed 20 August 2014.
- ↑ Chris York, "‘Soviet Ghosts’ by Rebecca Litchfield is a haunting collection of former cold war majesty", Huffington Post, 28 July 2014. Accessed 20 August 2014.
- ↑ James Rush, "Ghosts behind the Iron Curtain: The haunting images of the former Soviet Union's abandoned barracks, cinemas and fighter jet graveyards", Daily Mail, 22 July 2014. Accessed 20 August 2014.
- ↑ "", MA_Sters Mall Gallery 2010. Accessed 20 August 2014.
- ↑ "", Soviet Ghosts. Accessed 20 August 2014.
- ↑ "", Salon Del Mobile Milan 2016. Accessed 20 April 2016.
- 1 2 "Professional Photographer of the Year 2009", Professional Photographer. Accessed 12 July 2014.
- ↑ "", Clapham Art Prize 2014. Accessed 20 August 2014.