Photojournalism nominee

At the foot of the Caucasus, only a few miles north of Stalin‘s hometown Gori, the small Georgian village Mejvriskhevi can be found. Nowadays, it can only be entered from the south. The reason for this is the region behind the village: a territory called South Ossetia which was the scene of a military conflict between Russia and Georgia in August 2008. As a result, South Ossetia was occupied by Russian soldiers - even though, according to international law, it belonged and still does to Georgia. The border separating S.O. from the rest of the country is mainly invisible. The same holds true for the area around Mejvriskhevi. The young people here can barely remember a time before the war, but like their older fellow villagers, they know where not to go in order to avoid being caught by Russian soldiers who are monitoring the borderline. Recent incidents prove this to be a serious threat. As trespassing the borderline is strictly prohibited from both sides, Mejvriskhevi‘s relationship to its Northern neighbors has almost completely ended. Families and friends have been separated. The people living in this uncertain area cannot be sure if there will ever be a reunion.

Steffen is a 28-year-old photographer with a great sense of curiosity for how other people live. He is especially interested in the life of those, who find themselves in extraordinary circumstances without receiving much attention. For his work, he spends as much time as possible with his protagonists and always tries to become a part of their lives - at
least for a while. Although he considers himself to be a documentary photographer, he is always subjective and his pictures are a testimony to his sympathy for the portrayed people.
He worked in the film industry before commencing his photography study at the Neue Schule Für Fotografie Berlin, where he graduated in 2015. Since then he has been working on several long-term projects.


*1990 in Weimar
2008 - 2011 work in the film industry
from 2011 studying photography
since 2015 graduate at Neue Schule für Fotografie Berlin


Shoot The Face winner, January 2019
nominee in 2018 Edition of Photogrvphy Grant
nominee in 2017 Edition of Photogrvphy Grant


exhibitions:

„Gate 113“ May/June 2015
/ Galerie der Neuen Schule für Fotografie, Berlin

„Balkan-Orient-Express“ March 2013
/ KKH, Erfurt

„Nackt.“ March 2012
/ Galerie/Projektraum Überall, Berlin