Alyona Vogelmann Portraits

I think that everyone can be seen as a work of art…. And it’s not making people something they aren’t but rather revealing their essence and a beauty inside… We can be very hard on ourselves: we are not tall enough, we are not skinny enough… I hear from the most beautiful women: “Oh, I’m not photogenic, I don’t look good on pictures…” It’s understandable as our society and the media in a way dictate what beauty is. But what I see is that women could be beautiful regardless of shape or age… It’s not about anybody’s idealism, it’s how we feel about ourselves. I feel that it’s my job as a portrait photographer to make you feel beautiful and to give you something meaningful and timeless: the best pictures of yourself. Everybody is unique and I have to understand what the most harmonious look for you. Sometimes it relates to certain era in fashion, sometimes it’s just a style. It could be something totally unexpected! I call it seeing a jewel in a woman. I believe that everyone has it inside, you just have to dig it out and let it shine. My academic background in fine arts and fashion design, along with a degree in photography really helps me in this process. It’s like creating a piece of fine art where the center of the piece is a woman herself. I love that moment when a woman comes to my studio to see the pictures of herself revealed for the first time… I see her face lighting up and at this moment I feel that I’ve given her a tangible validation of her beauty... It’s’ all about making the difference, right? So at this particular moment I feel that these pictures make a difference. I feel that they help women reconnect with themselves, help them see how beautiful they really are. It’s an extremely gratifying and powerful experience. Ultimately, this is why I do photography. Alyona Vogelmann is a recipient of Arts and Humanities Fellowship Program Grant for year 2021 and 2022. The Arts and Humanities Fellowship Program supports qualified individual artists and humanities practitioners who significantly contribute to Washington DC as a world-class cultural capital.