Adrienne Grunwald New York, USA

Adrienne Grunwald is a freelance photographer and artist from New York City. After receiving her BA in English Literature from Lehigh University in 2004 she attended the Documentary Photography Program at the International Center of Photography. She has been the recipient of the Henry Margolis Foundation and Josephine Lyons merit scholarships as well as the Getty Images Award at the Eddie Adams Workshop. Her clients have included the Wall Street Journal, ESPN the Magazine, Edible Magazine and Bon Appetit. Adrienne is a proud member of the MJR photo collective.

Adrienne Grunwald

Adrienne Grunwald was chosen by photographer Ying Ang

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Laatikkomo’s interview with Adrienne Grundwald July 23rd, 2014.

Adrienne Grunwald Questions:

L:  Where are you from? What cities, and/or countries have you lived in – or what places have influenced you?

AG: I was born in New York City where I currently reside. I love to move about in this world, but New York is my home and always will be.

L:  What is your first memory of photography?

AG: I spent a summer in a darkroom when I was thirteen. It was there where I fell in love with the medium and all its fantastical ways.

L:  Salvador Dali is quoted as saying “Drawing is the honesty of the art. There is no possibility of cheating. It is either good or bad. Is photography an honest form of art?

AG: Photographs absolutely lie. But beyond those lies we can create some of the most incredible storytelling narratives. I’m more invested in the impact of the story than the truth in its details.

L:  Your CV mentions that you hold a degree in English literature. In what way do you feel this experience has informed the kind of photography you take?

AG: Every aspect of my journey thus far has informed the way in which I see the world. My decision to study English Literature was a selfish one, birthed from my absolute love of the story. It was a means to escape from my own reality.

L:  You create strong narratives with your images. Do you seek inspiration from literature?  

AG: I believe my passion for storytelling within and beyond literature, drives my love for the creation of art. Photography has become an incredible way for me to bring all my wants and dreams to life.

“Man – let me offer you a definition – is the storytelling animal. Wherever he goes he wants to leave behind not a chaotic wake, not an empty space, but the comforting marker buoys and trail signs of stories. He has to keep on making them up. As long as there’s a story, it’s all right. Even in his last moments, it’s said, in the split second of a fatal fall – or when he’s about to drown – he sees, passing rapidly before him, the story of his whole life.” – Graham Swift, Waterland

L:  Do you have a message that you strive to convey through the body of work you do as a photographer, or is the photographer’s role to try to remain invisible in telling someone else’s story?

AG: My message is this. I love this life. I love the adventure, I love the people, I love the chaos, I love the complexities and I love the love. And in a world, full of so much hate and hurt, my only means of fighting it all is with my love and want for more. So I am dedicated as a photographer to create work that comes from the heart.

L:  Do you consider your work political?

AG: My work is open to interpretation.

L:  Could you list 5 (or more) words that you were thinking about when you made this work (shown in Laatikkomo)?

AG: Power, Beauty, Grace, Love, Heart

L:  Part of the Laatikkomo project asks the artists to choose the next photographer in their link of photographers. Without revealing the identity of the artist you have chosen, can you express what qualities are you looking for in the artist you will choose, what criteria will guide your choice?

AG:  I am looking for an artist whose photography stretches beyond the limits of my own, for someone who has shown me a life that I have not lived, and whose work reaches straight to my heart.

Thank you very much Adrienne!