Robin Schwartz Photography

by Rebecca Quimby (Subscribe to Rebecca Quimby's posts): Sep 16th 2009 @ 9:00AM Filed Under: Photo Galleries

Robin Schwartz's gorgeous photographs of her daughter interacting with animals -- from dogs to primates -- have an other-worldly, enchanted feel to them. We love the way they remind us of fairy tales, and the way Schwartz's daughter Amelia looks so very at-home with her animal friends. Her photographs can be seen within collections at The Museum of Modern Art, The Metropolitan Museum, and The Smithsonian Institute. She is an assistant professor in photography at William Paterson University.

Paw Nation chatted with Schwartz to find out how she's able to shoot two of the most fidgety subjects on the planet -- kids and animals.

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Are these photographs computer-generated or staged?
None of the animal combinations with Amelia are computer-generated or cut-and-pasted. Amelia was with all animals and they are all alive except for the deer in the sand.

Robin Schwartz Photography

How do you work with the wild animals?
The only way to prepare when working with a child and animals is to hope for an overcast day, and load my film quickly. I do not have much control. I wing it and depend on the guidance of the animals' owners.

Robin Schwartz Photography

Does Amelia help conceive the scenarios depicted in the photographs?
Amelia's role in the photos has changed drastically with her getting older and more experienced. She makes great suggestions that save the situation. After all, the animals are reacting to her, not me.

Robin Schwartz Photography

What are you trying to say about the relationships between animals and children with these photos?
I have nothing to say about any child but my child. I have come to realize that Amelia has a natural affinity with animals, different from how I react to animals. I work at a relationship, am more conscious, then she is. I attempt to photograph a magical, wonderful world. I hope Amelia will look back upon these photographs and be glad she had these experiences with animals.

Robin Schwartz Photography

Many of your photographs have included animals. Do you have any pets?
Recently my Cornish Rex Nathaniel died; he was fifteen and a diabetic. We have two dogs, Rebecca, a 13-year-old whippet and Nora, a 9-year-old Chinese Crested (pictured); both dogs are photographed with Amelia. We have two cats, Jacob, a 7-year-old Sphynx and Hannah, a 3-year-old Oriental Shorthair.

Robin Schwartz Photography

What role do animals play in your life?
Animals are a support system of my life, a necessity.

Robin Schwartz Photography

To see more of Robin Schwartz's photography, including her Primate Portraits, visit M+B.

Robin Schwartz Photography

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