About ME
I am an award-winning photographer, known for creative portraits and documentary work. Originally from Hamburg, I have lived in London since 1994. With a background in costume design for film & TV, I studied photography at London College of Communication from 2003-05.
With a deep passion for storytelling, both of my careers feed into each other perfectly. My documentary images were once described as 'well composed stills, as if from a movie set'. In my creative portraits you can often find an element of 'costume language' and a sense for pattern and textures*. When it comes to creating an image from scratch, and design costumes for somebody else’s stories, I love the process of transformation into a fictional character. I love working with people and develop eye-catching ideas within a team, whether it for big companies or private individuals. I am flexible, have access to a professional studio in South London and own a portable mini studio, which can be set up wherever needed.
Internationally recognized, I exhibit at festivals, many solo shows and group exhibitions (details below). Otherwise, my work appeared in various book publications as well as magazines including British Journal of Photography, European Photography Magazine, The Guardian, Der Spiegel, f-LIP Magazine, Chaeng Magazine, Fitzrovia Journal, Soho Journal, CNN Magazine, South-Pacific Magazine and Lonely Planet.
*For examples of my work as a costume designer please visit www.astridschulzcostume.work
Awards
2024
Camera Club Members Awards
’1st price for the image of Ta Tong Gian, Ha Noi, from the series '100 Faces of Viet Nam' (book commission)
2020
FIX Photo Festival Awards 2020
’Judge’s Choice’ by Yvonne De Rosa, series category, with ‘Subject to Availability’Pink Lady® Food Photographer of the Year
Shortlisted with ‘Food for Sale’ category with 'Mbaye' (Senegal)
2019
Royal Photography Society / IPE 162
Shortlisted with '100 Faces of Viet Nam' (series)
2018
KOLGA Award Nomination
Best conceptual projects in 2017 for 'Blind Spots' (series)
2017
British Journal of Photography - 'Portrait of Britain' Award
Finalist with 'Daphne - Memories'KOLGA Award Nominations (3 categories)
Best Documentary Projects for '100 Faces of Viet Nam' as well as
'Daphne - Memories' and 'Mbaye' in the category 'One Shot'
2016
KOLGA Award Nominations (2 categories)
Best Documentar Projects from 2015 for '100 Faces of Viet Nam'
(series) as well as one image in the category 'One Shot' with 'Lassana'LensCulture Exposure Award
Finalist with '100 Faces of Viet Nam' (series)Social Documentary Network
Photographer of the month in January for '100 Faces of Viet Nam' (series)
2015
Bui Xuan Phai - 'Love for Hanoi' Award
Prestigious annual award announced in Vietnam for the
collaborative photo book publication 'Ha Noi - Capital City'KOLGA Award Nominations (2 categories)
Best conceptual projects in 2014 for 'Playing Cards' (series) image
as well as one in the category 'One Shot' with 'Workshop Senegal'
2014
London Photographic Awards
Highly commended in 'Lets Face It' for 'Made in Vietnam' (series)
2013
London Photographic Awards
Highly commended in 'Lets Face It' for 'Cleaning-Up' (single image)
2007
London Photographic Awards
Highly commended in 'Open Competition' for 'Car Park' (series)
2004
London Photographic Awards
Bronze award winner of the category 'Beauty and Form' for
'Food Keeps Body & Soul Together' (series)
Artist residencies
2015
La Maison Waaw
Rue Paul Holle x Blaise Diagne, Saint Louis, Senegal
Development of portraits and a variety of exhibition pieces
for ‘Made in Senegal'
2013
New Space Art Foundation
15 Le Loi, Hue City, Central Vietnam
Development of variety of exhibition pieces for ‘Made in Vietnam’
Book Commissions
2017
‘Phnom Penh: CAPITAL City'
Photo book publication by 'Hong Duc Publishing House' in collaboration with
Michael Waibel (editor) and the Meta House, Cambodia
2016
‘TP. Ho Chi Minh: MEGA City' - 3rd Edition 2017
Photo book publication by 'Hong Duc Publishing House' in collaboration with
Michael Waibel (editor) and the Goethe Institute Vietnam
2015
‘Da Nang: COASTAL City’
Photo book publication by 'Fine Art Publishing House' in collaboration with
Michael Waibel (editor) and the Goethe Institute Vietnam
2014
‘Hanoi: CAPITAL City’
Photo book publication by 'Fine Art Publishing House' in collaboration with
Michael Waibel (editor) and the Goethe Institute Vietnam
2013
‘TP. Ho Chi Minh: MEGA City’
Photo book publication by' Times Publishing House' in collaboration with
Michael Waibel & Hilbert Henning (editors) and the Goethe Institute Vietnam
2010
‘Bhaktivedanta Manor’
Publication by Fitzrovia Press in collaboration with Ranchor Prime and the International Society of Krishna Consciousness
2009
‘Cows and the Earth’
Publication by Fitzrovia Press in collaboration with Ranchor Prime
Exhibitions
2025
'London Independent Photographers' 36th Annual Exhibition'
Group Show, Espacio Gallery, 159 Bethnal Green Road, London E2 7DGDates: 28.01 - 02.02 / Opening event on Thursday, 30.01, from 7pm
2024
‘Annual Members Summer Show 2024’
Group Show, exhibiting work from ‘100 Faces of Viet Nam’, at Gallery 1885, The Camera Club, 16 Bowden Street, London SE11 4DS
‘Food As Medicine’
Solo Show, exhibiting work from ‘Made in Vietnam / Senegal / Bolivia / London’, at Gallery 1885, The Camera Club, 16 Bowden Street, London SE11 4DS
'London Independent Photographers' 35th Annual Exhibition'
Group Show, Espacio Gallery, 159 Bethnal Green Road, London E2 7DG
2023
‘Annual Members Winter Show 2023’
Group Show, exhibiting work from ‘Boomers’, at Gallery 1885, The Camera Club, 16 Bowden Street, London SE11 4DS
‘Mahlzeit’ (Meal Time)
Dom Museum Wien, Vienna, Austria. Group show, exhibiting work from ‘Made in Vietnam / Senegal / Bolivia / London’
Visit:_dommuseum.at/mahlzeit)
2022
‘Mahlzeit’ (Meal Time)
Dom Museum Wien, Vienna, Austria. Group show, exhibiting work from ‘Made in Vietnam / Senegal / Bolivia / London’
Visit:_dommuseum.at/mahlzeit)
‘Fruchtallee’ (aka ‘the artist’s breakfast’)
Solo exhibition, by KunsthalleLinz, hosted at Stephansplatz 6, Dom Museum Wien, Austria
2021
‘Making Something That Makes You Feel Good’
Luva Gallery, online group show, exhibiting work from ‘Subject to Availability’ Visit:_makesomethingthatmakesyoufeelgood
2020
‘London Independent Photographers’ Chronicles: Life Under Lockdown
Online group show, at www.lipchronicles.org.uk
‘FIX Photo’ Festival Awards 2020
Laura Noble Gallery, online group show, available from 10.10 - 31.12.2020
2019
‘London Independent Photographers’ New Year Pop-Up (group show) The Greenwich Gallery, Linear House, Penton Place, London SE10 8RS
‘London Independent Photographers’ 12h Greenwich Annual Exhibition (group show) The Greenwich Gallery, Linear House, Penton Place, London SE10 8RS
2018
'London Independent Photographers' 30th Annual Exhibition' (group show, part of the Photomonth East London International Photography Festival)
Escasio Gallery, 159 Bethnal Green Road, London E2 7DG‘London Independent Photographers’ 11th Greenwich Annual Exhibition (group show) The Greenwich Gallery, Linear House, Penton Place, London SE10 8RS
‘Blind Spots' at the Kolga Photo Awards (group show)
Kolga Tbilisi Foto Festival, Hippodrome Park, Tbilisi, Georgia'People in the City' (solo show, repetition from 2017)
Meta House, 37 Samdach Sotharos Blvd, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
2017
'London Independent Photographers' 29st Annual Exhibition (group show)
The Truman Brewery, Unit 11, Dray Walk, London E1 6QL'Portrait Salon' No7 (group show)
Pub in the Park, 19 Martello Street, London Fields, London E8 3PEBJP 'Portrait of Britain' (group show)
Nationwide exhibition in public places, UKLondon Independent Photographers’: The 10th Greenwich Annual Exhibition (group show)
The Greenwich Gallery, Linear House, Penton Place, London SE10 8RS‘100 Faces of Viet Nam' at the Kolga Photo Awards (group show)
Kolga Tbilisi Foto Festival, Hippodrome Park, Tbilisi, Georgia'People in the City' (solo show)
Meta House, 37 Samdach Sotharos Blvd, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
2016
'London Independent Photographers' 28st Annual Exhibition' (group show)
Espacio Gallery, 159 Bethnal Green Road, London E2 7DG‘ICONIC 2016’: Madonna (group show)
Bobez Arte Contemporanea, Via Isidoro la Lumia 22, 90139 Palermo, Italia‘London Independent Photographers’: The 9th Greenwich Annual Exhibition (group show)
The Greenwich Gallery, Linear House, Penton Place, London SE10 8RS‘Open Portfolio Screening', showcasing 'Made in Vietnam' & 'Made in Senegal' (group show)
Manuel Rivera-Ortis Foundation, 18 rue de la Calade, Arles, France‘LensCulture' Exposure Award 2015 at Photo London (group show)
Somerset House, The Strand, London WC2R 1LA‘100 Faces of Viet Nam' at the Kolga Photo Awards (group show)
Kolga Tbilisi Foto Festival, 14 Kostava Street, Tbilisi, Georgia‘Hairdressers' (solo show)
Handwerkskammer des Saarlandes, Hohenzollernstrasse 47 - 49, 66117 Saarbrücken, Germany'Portrait Salon' No5 (group show)
Reminders Photography Stronghold, 131-0032, 2-38-5, Higashi-mukojima,
Sumida-ku, Tokyo, Japan
2015
'Portrait Salon' No5 (group show)
Embassy Tea Gallery, 195 - 205 Union Street, Bankside, London SE1 0LN'London Independent Photographers' 27st Annual Exhibition' (group show)
Embassy Tea Gallery, 195 - 205 Union Street, Bankside, London SE1 0LN‘London Independent Photographers’: The 8th Greenwich Annual Exhibition (group show)
The Greenwich Gallery, Linear House, Penton Place, London SE10 8RS‘Hairdressers' (solo show)
Galerie Sali e Tabacchi, Feldmannstr. 144, 66119 Saarbrücken, Germany‘Playing Cards' at the Kolga Awards (group show)
Kolga Tbilisi Foto Festival, 14 Kostava Street, Tbilisi, Georgia‘Made in Senegal' (solo show)
Galerie Éthiopiques, rue Khalifa Ababacar Sy x Potin, Saint-Louis du Sénégal
2014
‘Playing Cards' (solo show)
Flaxon Phootch, 237 Kentish Town Road, Kentish Town, London NW5 2JT‘Farmers' from 'Made in Vietnam' (solo show)
Caphe House, 114 Bermondsey Street, Bermondsey, London SE1 3TX'Light-Headed’ 2014 (group show)
Gallery320 at 320 Bethnal Green Road, Bethnal Green, London E2 0AG‘London Independent Photographers’: The 7th Greenwich Annual Exhibition (group show)
The Greenwich Gallery, Linear House, Penton Place, London SE10 8RS‘Hairdressers' (duo show)
Flaxon Phootch, 237 Kentish Town Road, Kentish Town, London NW5 2JT
2013
‘Made in Vietnam' (solo show)
9A4 M Studio, Block A, Zone 9, Tran Thanh Tong Street, Hanoi, Vietnam‘Made in Vietnam' (solo show)
New Space Arts Foundation, 15 Le Loi, Hue City, Central Vietnam‘Over the Hill’: A Photographic Journey (group show)
Haslemere Educational Museum, 78 High Street, Haslemere, Surrey GU27‘London Independent Photographers’: The Sixth Greenwich Annuale Exhibition (group show)
The Greenwich Gallery, Linear House, Penton Place, London SE10 8RS
2012
The Magic Man (solo show)
Davenports Magic, Charing Cross Underground Arcade, Exit 9, The Strand, London, WC2N 4HZLondon Independent Photographers' 24rd Annual Exhibition (group show)
The Strand Gallery (Proud Central), 32 John Adam Street, London, WC2N 6BPLondon's Photomonth Festival: 'Light-Headed' (group show)
Gallery 320, 320 Bethnal Green Road, London E2 0AG'London Village Project': LIP Gallery Exhibition (group show)
Goldsmiths College, New Academic Building, University of London, New Cross, London, SE14 6NW‘Over the Hill’: A Photographic Journey - Southport Exhibition (group show)
Ground Floor Gallery, Wayfarers Arcade, Lord Street, Southport, PR8 1NT
2011
'Kate’s Journal' (solo show)
The Underground Gallery, The Strand, Charing Cross Underground Station
Exit 9, London, WC2N 4HZLondon Independent Photographers' 23rd Annual Exhibition (group show)
The Strand Gallery (Proud Central), 32 John Adam Street, London, WC2N 6BP2The Long Night of the Pictures: ‘Over the Hill’ (group show)
Allee-Center, Landsberger Allee, Alt-Hohenschönhausen, Berlin, GermanyGuernsey Photography Festival: ‘Over the Hill’ (group show)
The Rotunda, Royal Avenue, St Peter Port, GuernseyImpact Art Fair: ‘Over the Hill’ (group show)
Candis Arts Trust, 3 Torrens Street, London, EC1V 1NQ‘Over the Hill’: A Photographic Journey (digital group show)
The Lightbox, Chobham Road, Woking, Surrey, GU21 4AAFood Keeps Body & Soul Together (solo show)
Taylor St Baristas, 28 Queens Road, Brighton, BN1 3XA
2010
‘Brighton Photo Fringe’: Food Keeps Body & Soul Together (solo show)
Brighton Media Centre, 15 -17 Middle Street, Brighton BN1 1ALLondon Independent Photographys' 22nd Annual Exhibition (group show)
The Strand Gallery (Proud Central), 32 John Adam Street, London WC2N 6BP‘London Photomonth’: Food Keeps Body & Soul Together (solo show)
Shipton Street Gallery, Shipton Street, London E2 7RZTotal Image Nation: Something Beautiful (group show)
Michaelhouse Centre, Trinity Street, Cambridge CB2 1SUMindsoup 2010 (Mixed-Media group show)
Gallery320, 320 Bethnal Green Road, London E2 0AGOpen Salon 2010 (group show)
Viewfinder Gallery, Linear House, Peyton Place, Greenwich, London SE10Paper Jam (group show)
The 1st floor Gallery , Goldsmiths College, Dixon Road, New Cross, London
2009
Car Park: ‘under cover’ (solo show)
Viewfinder Photography Gallery, Linear House, Peyton Place, Greenwich, London SE10 8RSSalon 09 (group show)
Four Corners (group show), 121 Roman Road, Bethnal Green, London, E2 0QNBetween Fiction & Desire (duo show)
Brokers Wine Bar, 9 Leadenhall Market, London, EC3V 1LRCar Park (solo show)
The Space, Audley House, Hove Street, Hove, BN3 2DE
2005
Seven Deadly Sins (group show)
The Atrium Gallery, University of the Arts, London College of Communication, London SE1 6SB
2004
Food keeps Body and Soul together (solo show)
First Out, 52 St. Giles High Street, London WC2H
2003
AOP Open Award exhibition: Schöne Aussichten (group show)
Association of Photographers, 81 Leonard Street, London EC2
2002
Tenants at the Brick House: A - Z (group show)
Old Truman Brewery, 152c Brick Lane, London E1 6RUReflections (group show)
Living_Space_Gallery, 3 Market Yard Mews, Bermondsey Street, London SE1
2001
Look (solo show)
Blue Room, 3 Bateman Street, Soho, London W1V