Brittany, Eric and Lily Rose and Young Woman on a Bicycle / Olga Ginzburg

Olga Ginzburg
Staten Island, NY, USA
 
Brittany, Wolfe's Pond Park, 2021
Eric and Lily Rose, New Dorp Beach,  2022
Young Woman on a Bicycle, Cedar Grove Beach,  2024
Archival pigment prints, 16x20 in.
 
These images are  part of Ginzburg’s ongoing series Encounters, a project she began upon returning to her hometown in 2016. At its core, the series is a reflection on the deep, evolving relationship between self and place. 
 
Eric and Lily Rose: Father and daughter out on a spring day in their new neighborhood.
 
Brittany: Born and raised on Staten Island, Brittany values the least populated borough's green spaces. The greenbelt on Staten Island spans 2,800 acres.
 
Young Woman on a Bicycle: She rides her bicycle between the beach and the marshland, an area once devastated by Hurricane Sandy. In the intervening years, it has seen regrowth and regeneration. 
 
Through intimate portraits, Ginzburg captures fleeting yet profound moments of connection, exploring the magic found in everyday encounters. Each photograph emerges from a layered dialogue—between the photographer and her subjects, between individuals and their environment—creating a nuanced meditation on identity, belonging, and the ways people navigate community.
 
Olga Ginzburg is a Belarusian-American photographer whose work explores identity, home, and belonging through a layered visual narrative. A graduate of City College of New York, her Staten Island series was featured in the Alice Austen House Museum’s triennial in 2019, leading to her first editorial assignment. Through her photography, she envisions a future where cultural identities are recognized, celebrated, and understood.