Nikolay Bakharev

Posted by Fabio 14 February 2012

Nikolay Bakharev was born in 1946 in Mikhailovka, in the Russian region of Altai. Aged 4, he was placed in an orphanage after both his parents died, where he remained until he was 16. After a period working as a mechanic in a metallurgy plant, he began his career as a photographer. His work bridges a gap between documentary, eroticism and social commentary. Although intimate, it would be wrong to regard his images as home-spun eroticism. His photographs are of individuals like himself- from the same background and circumstances, living through the same period of political change. At the moment the shutter closes however, he has separated himself from his subjects portrayals of beauty, love and sex. By removing himself from his surroundings, he exposes his greater comprehension, and detachment.