What turns someone into an artistic photographer? Would it be the prizes she won? The equipment she possesses? The exhibitions she realized or the books she published? In my perception, the most important criterion is someone’s ability to choose the slices of reality that she filters through her sensitivity.
Scene choices are often subjective, unconscious and full of doubts. However, the photographer needs them to maintain his/her relationship with the world. This whole ecosystem of shapes, colors and textures offers a better understanding of reality. Everyday photography is a kind of contemporary map that helps us to understand reality. Some people prefer to watch documentaries, others to read historical books, but some artists seek an interpretation in the everyday and visual perception of the world.
Zuleika de Souza is a photographer who is glued to everyday life. Her gaze offers the viewer almost an inventory of the most ephemeral moments, from afternoons with tea and cake, walks in the street, to fresh food ready to go to the oven. This light and unpretentious interest creates a peaceful and welcoming ambience. Shying away from clutter, her photos transpire an almost rural simplicity. Living in plainness seems to be the compass of her work.
We are used to living in a rush, competing with machines and robots craving for freedom and autonomy, but Zuleika de Souza’s photographs seem to indicate that this freedom may lie in other places and be achieved at a different pace.
