I am a photographer and writer based in Madison, Wisconsin, USA. My work lies at the intersection of social documentary, editorial, and fine art photography. I examine everyday scenes of beauty, a beauty not defined by perfection. Sometimes the images are of the newsworthy, other times of the mundane. I use photos and words to create a narrative to bridge time and distance. I am drawn to stories that communicate a fragile, disappearing sense of place and environment. That includes both the built environment and efforts to save structures that could easily be lost to the ravages of time, as well as the natural environment with a focus on the ephemeral and graphic qualities of nature. I search out stories of people doing good for no other reward than the good itself. And I believe in the power of photography to provide women a voice in what seems a never-ending journey to equality, inspired by the work of women street photographers, photojournalists, and documentarians.
I favor natural light, deep shadows, high contrast, negative space, and editing without excess. I turn to black and white and a square snapshot aesthetic to bring quiet order to complicated scenes and further simplify the narrative. I don’t consider my work heavily preconceived. It is more instinctive, based around unplanned, candid moments that present themselves and the feeling in those moments. In the split second of freezing the frame I work to create images rooted in compassion, empathy, honesty, and wonder.
At turns, I think of myself as artsy photojournalist and humanist storyteller.
BIO
Carla Minsky holds a degree in Communication Arts and a studio art certificate in Photography from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. While her career has largely been built around words, first as a TV news producer, then a copywriter for advertising and PR agencies, and finally as the owner of her own small marketing firm, the addition of photography brings new layering to her work as a storyteller. She is forever curious about the power of stories, how they connect us, make us whole and hopeful, make us better, and sustain us. Her words and photos have appeared in regional newspapers and magazines and she writes extensively for destination travel guides. When not exploring stories in the Midwest, she is in New York City visiting family and friends. She clears her mind with tennis and gardening.
One of her photos from a series taken on Madison’s State Street following the protests of Summer 2020 was selected for inclusion in The Photography Exhibition 2020, a juried photography exhibition curated by the University of Wisconsin Art Department.
