Rita Ostrovskaya
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rita Ostrovskaya (Ukrainian: Рита Островська; born 1953), also known as Rita Ostrovska,[1] is a Ukrainian photographer, living in Kassel, Germany. Her work has contributed to the preservation of traces of Jewish culture in Ukraine.[2][3][4] Ostrovskaya's work is held in the collection of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.[5]
Ostrovskaya was born in Kyiv.[6] She studied cinematography and journalism in Leningrad.[7]
Her large-scale project Jews in the Ukraine contains a series of photographs of typical Jewish towns—shtetl—in Ukraine, and the lives of Jews living in them. It was made between 1989 and 2001, beginning with Shargorod, at a time of significant change. Her accompanying text describes Jewish customs and cultural rituals that were being practiced.[6]
Personal life
Since 2001, she has been living and working in Kassel, Germany.[3] She is also a ceramicist.
Publications
- Jews in the Ukraine. With photographs and accompanying text by Ostrovskaya.
- Jews in the Ukraine: 1898–1994 Shtetls. Berlin: Hatje Cantz, 1996. ISBN 978-3-89322-852-2. English-language version.
- Juden in der Ukraine. Berlin: Hatje Cantz, 1996. ISBN 3-89322-763-6. German-language version.
Collections
Ostrovskaya's work is held in the following permanent collection:
- San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA: 4 prints (as of 19 March 2022)[5]
