Biographie
Alexandra Polina was born in Uzbekistan. She studied Journalism at the National University of Uzbekistan in Tashkent. She graduated In 2017 from the University of Applied Science in Bielefeld with MA in Art and Design. Currently she is working as a freelance photographer.
The main subject of her work has always been concentrated around the themes of immigration and identity, especially their social and emotional aspects. Having spent twenty years in her home land, Alexandra moved to Germany, which was a life-changing experience. The personal history and identity of the photographer runs through her work across the fields of staged photography and documentary themes.
Présentation
When I visited Hamburg for the first time, my friends took me out to lunch on Steindamm. The street overwhelmed, irritated and inspired me. Everything exists side by side: oriental restaurants, illegal prostitution, diamond sales, mosques, sex shops, a methadone clinic and various shops with products from all over the world. I heard more languages at the same time than anywhere else in Hamburg. Almost every European city has this kind of street.
Three years ago I moved into the house in the middle of Steindamm. Since then, I have been observing life on the street — not only as a private person, but also as a photographer.
My main focus lies on the street's local communities and their uniquely personal styles.
The clear visual language of the series is providing a stage for everything that goes unnoticed in chaotic everyday life. I’m closely examining my marginalized neighbourhood, capturing the stories of the street through details while celebrating the individual aesthetic choices.
Growing up as a minority in a central Asian multi-ethnic city, I'm attracted to loud, bright colours and rich textures. I like to break with the classical idea of aesthetic categories and highlight the mixture of everything that doesn’t fit into western society's beauty standards