"A great photograph is a full expression of
what one feels about what is being photographed in the deepest sense, and is, thereby, a true expression of what one feels about life in its entirety."
-Ansel Adams
Welcome to BlueZ | Photography.
Authenticity and sincerity are hard to achieve in photography. The advantage of a documentary and street photographer is the freedom to catch spontaneity in a way that is very challenging in other forms of photography.
My photography aims to capture the moment; and it aims to respect and explore the essence of the authentic.
Queen of Havana
In November 2009 we followed, together with the reporter Anni Valtonen, the life of a reknown transvestite, Kiriam, in Havana, Cuba. The reportage was published in Maailman Kuvalehti (Feb 2010).
The Breaking of the Silence
Reconciliating the post-genocide Rwanda.
33 Years After the Coup
On March 23, 2009 Argentina commemorated the 33th year since the military coup that overthrew Isabel Perón and lead to the disappearances of over 30 000 persons.
Children of the World
In November 2009 we followed, together with the reporter Anni Valtonen, the life of a reknown transvestite Kiriam, in Havana, Cuba.
Kiriam, a splendid, lustrous, elysian queen, is the light and voice of the transvestite community in Cuba, admired and idolized by many. With its dark history in the persecution of homosexuals when the cult hero Che Guevara participated in their imprisonment and torture with impunity, Cuba has never been an easy country for the sexually diverse. Under the current Castro dynasty, the LGBT enjoy a relative freedom from harassment, yet especially transvestism is still frowned upon and the officials occasionally crack down queer show dens.
The reportage was published in Maailman Kuvalehti (Feb 2010). Photo captions have been freely modified and translated from the original Finnish text of journalist Anni Valtonen, with some additions of my own.
The online version of the original story can be found here: http://www.kepa.fi/kumppani/arkisto/2010_2/7557
In May 2010 I travelled to Kigali, Rwanda, to participate in the 16th Rwandan Genocide Commemoration ceremony. The main event with public speeches, anthems and the performances were held at Amohoro stadium, but the official mourning period lasted for a week.
This week was one of the most intense of my lives, while I involved myself with hands-on commemoration and spent days researching and learning concretely about the 1994 events that I had studied before from books. What I learned is that Rwanda offers a remarkable example of a truly sustainable form of reconciliation, regardless of some of the faults - in some ways much better than other countries aiming to reconcile, such as Germany, South Africa, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Armenia or Australia. Despite my expectations the country and its people offered me a sincere glimmer of hope.
Read a more in-depth analysis on the Rwandan reconciliation in my blog:
Part 1
Part 2
33 Years after the Coup
In 1976, March 24, Isabel Perón was overthrown in a right-wing coup d'état and a military junta took over Argentina. The junta, officially called "the National Reorganization Process" , was supported by US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, despite the massive protests by human rights activists all around the world. Within the seven years of its power, over 30 000 dissidents 'disappeared', in what is today commonly refered to as the Dirty War. In the opinion of many, the disappearances amount to crimes against humanity and even genocide.
33 years later hardly none of those accused in participating in the state sponsored terrorism of the Dirty War have been prosecuted. Today many foreign governments, including the USA, UK, many Latin American and European countries (Finland among them) are pressing individual cases against the former military regime. After the Supreme Court's 2005 repeal of the pardon laws established in the late 80´s by Carlos Menem, first trials have finally started.
In April 2010 Reynaldo Bignone, 82, who was the de facto president in 1982-1983 was sentenced with other 5 military officers to 25 years of imprisonment over kidnappings and torture during the regime. A total of 1464 have been formally accused for crimes against humanity, and 74 have been convicted.
There is no other thing in the world that would symbolize future and hope for mankind better than children. Here is a collection of some of my favourite shots of children taken during the last few years while on the road. Hope you will enjoy.
With an academic background in political philosophy, having been active in the NGO scene for almost a decade, and being an active independent traveller, photography has been a natural step for me to take in the recent years. As my travels continue I am hoping to evolve my photography, while also getting more involved in my freelance writing activities.
While studio and creative photography are somewhat more new to me, I have recently felt a great urge to express myself through these mediums as well. I will add some of my studio work hopefully soon. I hope you enjoyed my work - and do stay tuned for new photos!
About the photos:
Most of my photos in the Galleries section have been accepted to some international exhibitions, the Al-Thani International Photography Award 2007 and 2008 and the Trierenberg International Photography Exhibitions 2007 and 2008. In 2011 I received the WPGA Gold Award for a photo of mine, and was also a Finalist in the Julia Cameron Award in 2011. I have also been awarded in the Lonely Planet Photography Contest 2010.
I have been published in various magazines and publications such as Maailman Kuvalehti, Mondo, Kauppalehti, Amnesty International, 6 Degrees, and some others.
All my photos are high resolution images and available in RAW, .Tiff, Jpeg or any other format requested.
Upcoming solo exhibitions:
"Next Generation" _Culture Centre Korjaamo, Nov-Dec 2011
"Orphaned" _Culture Tram, Nov 2011
Name: Zara Järvinen
Current Location: Helsinki, Finland
Next trip: Dominican Republic
(Dec 10 - Jan 11)
"My job is to catch their hearts,
while letting them stay free."
- Anonymous
To replace the photos and add your own, click on any of the photos then on the photo list icon on the bottom menu.
You have a second minipage inside the PORTFOLIOS slide for subcategories.
You can edit all the menu item names by selecting them and using the edit text icon on the bottom menu.
To add more subcategories:
* Select the minipage inside the PORTFOLIOS slide, go to the slide manager icon on the bottom menu, rollover any of the slides and click the duplicate icon
* Create a new menu item or button for it (or duplicate and edit an existing one)
* Then reassign the orange arrows links to the photo album in your new subcategory using the behaviors icon (appears on the bottom menu when you select the arrow)
