Born in Beirut
in 1969, Greta Torossian has a degree in photography from the Université
Saint-Esprit (Kaslik, Lebanon).
In 1996,
she won the annual university competition sponsored by Kodak-Lebanon.
Her interest in duality was already evident as she transformed ordinary
furniture into human form. Her black and white photos have a clean, pure
style.
In 1998,
Greta was chosen to participate in Lebanon's first Mois de la Photographie,
sponsored by the Maison Européenne de la Photographie. She expressed
a new duality with fragmented nudes, still in black and white.
In 1999,
with "Real Visions", Torossian shifted to color to provide a
realistic depiction of the duality between destruction and reconstruction
in the central Beirut landscape.
In May 2000,
the "Real Visions" series was exhibited at Saint Etienne's annual
international festival, "Art dans la Ville."
Greta Torossian works as a freelance documentary and commercial photographer.
INTERVIEW
WITH GRETA TOROSSIAN
RUAVISTA:
How does the street inspire your work?
Greta
Torossian: I have always been interested in the urban landscape, particularly
its architectural and graphic features (signs, street numbers and colors).
When I am in a city, I wonder what's changed over time and what the city
looked like 10, 20 or 30 years ago. I enjoy discovering signs of the past.
For me, the urban landscape has its own life, almost like human beings
do … The subject of "Real Visions" is the city the extreme
manipulations on it. I'm still inspired by the urban landscape and architecture
in my work.
R. What do you look for when you walk in the street?
G. T. When I travel, I love to walk the streets and discover new neighborhoods
and details. For me, streets are as interesting as traditional tourist
sites. I especially look at architecture, how buildings are arranged,
how small spaces fit into large ones, colors, signs - down to the smallest,
seemingly insignificant detail! For me, it's a great way to get a feel
for people.
R.Why do you love your city, Beirut?
G. T. All I've ever known of central Beirut district is the ruins, and
later reconstruction. Now I love the old yellow stone buildings so beautifully
renovated, a mix of French and Ottoman styles.
They are in a much different ambiance today: cafes, restaurants and luxury
boutiques. A city's spirit cannot revive in the same way. In the rest
of Beirut, other than the old houses called "palaces", the most
interesting thing for me is the different style and atmosphere of almost
each neighborhood.
R.Which photographs of cities and streets appeal to you?
G. T. I really like Brassaï's photos of Paris at night, with his
eerie vision of reality, and Bill Brandt's equally subjective photos of
the urban landscape. Like many others from that period, both of them were
very close to the surrealists.
R.What do you think of digital photography and the Internet?
How will these new technologies change photography?
G. T. It's true that digital photography has brought about a revolution,
especially in news photos that are sent over the Internet. But I'm not
a great supporter of transforming reality through digital editing. For
me, photography's only raison d'être is its authenticity!
GRETA
TOROSSIAN 
