When two people are at one

When two people are at one
in their inmost hearts,
they shatter even the strength of iron or bronze.


And when two people understand each other
in their inmost hearts,
their words are sweet and strong,
like the fragrance of orchids.


(poetry quoted from the I Ching)

Mothers and daughters, fathers and sons

How often do you get together as a family, how strong are the ties between family members once you leave home?.. Above, you see my mother holding a picture of my grandmother who is no longer with us. The four-year old child next to her is me. We were all a very tight female unit once and I miss it a lot.

This longing resulted in the project "Mothers and daughters, fathers and sons...". It looks at the relationships between family members, the female/ male bond, the energy between them. I have photographed nine groups of related men and women from Bedfordshire, who were kind enough to share their stories with me.

The exhibition is currently running at the Central Library in Luton,Beds until 8th June 2009 as a part of the B:Fest Art Festival. For more info please email me mcordwell@mail.ru. And here are the portraits and stories of the real people...

Carole's family just before their afternoon tea

“We always have been very close, a close-knit family. My sister lives in Ireland now so when she comes over we spend as much time together as we can. I like to keep my family near; it makes me feel content when we are all together”

Anne-Marie’s family celebrating Mother’s Day

“Our family are very important to each other. We are open, we listen then try to help and reassure each other. We all believe we are a strong female family unit and give each other unconditional love and support”

Ekrem’s family at his house on a Sunday afternoon

“We meet and have a chat over a coffee all the time. Some of us work together and we often visit each other’s houses… Sometimes we get on well, sometimes we argue and fight but we always look out for each other”

Amira’s family enjoying the Saturday morning sunshine

“We come from a culture where the family is almost the centre of everything, and this is something that has always stayed with us. Things can go up and down, but family remains, either physically or in our hearts…Our relationship is based on unconditional love, mutual understanding and trust”

Kevin’s family celebrating his birthday

“We get together several times a year. Once of us lives in London so it’s not always easy, but we make the time… A good family is one that understands and accepts the needs of each individual family member and our family has that”

Danny’s family having a bunter on a weekend

“Generally, we meet up at each others houses for a meal rather than go out. We also get together with each other for kids birthday parties and school fetes and plays…No family is perfect, but I believe we have great understanding of each other..

Kelly's family in the park

“We do everything together; we meet up at least every week. An ideal family to me is where people are always there for each other, it’s about friendship and support. And that’s what we’ve got, I think. Despite a big age gap, we all have a laugh together and understand each other perfectly”

Catherine’s family having a picnic in their garden

“An ideal family are close, loving and they look out for each other. We are a close family – loving and supportive. We are very open and can talk to each other easily and share any worries we have. We also have lots of laughs together”

PS will be very happy to hear your feedback or share ideas...get in touch!

We are not alone...

We are not alone on this planet and as a former city and a current town gal I don't always remember about this. Well a recent experience in the Peak district reminded me of the wider world around us, and all the creatures in it.



I spent a wonderful day walking around in the Peak district and bumped into all sorts of creatures from dogs to sheep and from horses to ponies... and even chickens! And God only knows what else was there that I missed (and I don't mean the random cyclist that looked very fit but still very out of breath!)



So yes, the collection today is a little reminder about how cute, entertaining and sweet the creatures are around us... Have a nice day everyone

I take your name and say "I do"...

.. or the best event to share with the rest of the world with (well, I suppose there could be a couple of those :)))



Images displayed here are from the wedding that I have recently photographed. It was full of joy and great spirit, which I did my best to capture. However the small details are great, still, and I find they sometimes portray the atmosphere in a no less acurate was than the big shots of people having fun.



Weddings are wonderful events to photograph, it's funny, when I was a child I always wanted our family to get invited to weddings more often - I just wanted to dip myself into the wonderful spirit of celebrating love and devotion.


Well, it did not happen as often as I wanted then, however, these days I can be a part of many - and not only that, but also capture great moments which will become treasured memories -special and different for each couple...

Not a poser, just a beautiful person

There is this something I have been thinking about lately: when we are looking at images - other people's and our own, how often do we comment on how the model looks and how often is it purely related to the art of making a photograph?



I suppose, these two sometimes (and maybe even often) are impossible to separate. And I do strongly believe that a good photographer will manage to communicate the inner beauty of their subject, and Beauty truly does come in all shapes and sizes, colours and dimensions.



I spent the weekend in Exeter, at the house of a friend, who I was dying to photograph - especially that the house where she lives is a complete inspiration - full packed of "interestings", old furniture, grandmother's paintings, things that nobody remembers where they came from.



My friend has the most beautiful personality. She is very pretty, too. Unfortunately! She does not like her picture taken. Well, she was kind enough to let me photograph her. A reserved, very well-mannered girl with white skin, baby blond hair and brown eyes - I am hoping I did her justice...

Photo cards

I am in the process of producing a range of greeting cards with my photographs in them. This idea has been in my head for a while, just did not have much time to materialise. Finally, I think it's time now. The images I am displaying here today and just an idea of what could become a greeting card. These are relatively abstract, later on I will post images for other "themes".



To be honest, thinking back now when I was very young I thought if I am ever a photographer, I'd like to produce images for greeting cards. Well, not much of an ambition maybe, but at that point I did not have much of a clue of what else there is.



Plus a part of me believes that my tastes and preferences have been shaped by the place I grew up in - that is, Saint Petersburg, a beautiful Russian city with a European exterior (in the centre at least!) and with a Russian soul. A city that is as young as America (yes, just over 300 years old!) and yet looking older as all architectural styles came to Russia from Europe with a bit of a delay... hence people refer to them as "Russian Baroque", "Russian Classicism", etc. You get the idea. And even after years of living in another country I am still very much a Doctor Jivago kinda girl :)

Back to the street - girls

Chatting, laughing, gossiping, giggling - it's fun to shoot a group of women talking - they often looks so animated!



At a street concert I noticed three friends enjoying the performance. I did several shoots of them, at different moments of their interaction.



Again, as before, the unsaturated finish enhances their expressions and draws our eyes to their personality rather than distract us with bright colours..