Lucia Ganieva

‘Factory’

‘Factory’ is a series of photographs taken in a textile factory in the city of Ianovo, some 275 km north east of Moscow. Ianovo was known as 'the city of brides', as the majority of the population was made up of women who worked in the textile industry. In the age of the Tsars, the then village was the centre of the industry in Russia, with all kinds of cloth being manufactured in more than 30 plants. These days, however, due mainly to the competition from countries with low labour costs, such as China, almost all of the factories have had to close. At the moment, no more than handful are still active. Despite this there is hope that these plants last a while longer. 

Lucia Ganieva chose for her photographic series a large plant where the whole range of industrial processes were carried out, but which nowadays only deals with the whitening and printing processes. Ganieva's provides a portrait of the factory, combining its interiors with the cloth made there and the women who work there. The cloth depicted originates from different collections, both new and old. The same occurs with the images of the interiors, in which one can see old and new equipment, with female workers of different ages.

Background

Lucia Ganieva was born in Russia but has lived in Holland since 1993.

From 1997 until 2000 she did an MA in Fashion at TMO in Doon (Holland). In 2004 she began to study at Amsterdam's Academy of Photography, where she graduated cum laude in 2007. That same summer she travelled to Arlés where she showed her work, achieving the prize for best portfolio.

From 2004 until January 2009 she has participated in various collective exhibitions in Holland and the USA. She has had an individual exhibition at the Moscow Photo Biennale in April 2008, at Biennale 3 in Bucharest and at the National Centre of Photography in Saint Petersburg, Russia.