A fashion photographer from Verkhnedvinsk won a grant to study at the best fashion school in Milan

A lucky ticket for training at one of the best European schools of fashion, style, and design in Italy was awarded to our countrywoman Irina Okuneva thanks to her victory in the open international contest of fashion photography "Golden Belarus". A total of 120 professionals and amateurs took part in the marathon, and the shots they took showcased our country from the perspective of modern fashion and glossy magazines. The best of the best were chosen by a jury and through online voting. It is gratifying that it was a shot from Verkhnedvinsk that did not yield in creativity and skill of execution even to its capital competitors. Its author was awarded first place by the jury and received the main prize – a grant for training in Italy and a certificate worth 30 million rubles. By the way, Irina is known in her hometown as a drawing teacher at the children's art school, while her popularity as a photographer and makeup artist has long gone beyond the district.

Her interest in women's faces has been since childhood: Ira was mesmerized by them in Soviet fashion magazines and eagerly awaited the opening of the art school in the city to create captivating images on paper. There was no question of which university to enter; the choice immediately fell on the art and graphics department of VSU named after P. Masherov. By assignment, she returned to her native Verkhnedvinsk, first as a teacher of fine arts and technical drawing at the local school, then to the art school where she herself once learned to hold a brush correctly and make her first strokes.

In her free time, she did makeup for brides. She learned the basics of this in Vitebsk while studying at the university. For a change, she also took up photography, not suspecting at the time that this hobby would grow into a business and the cause of her life. She started with a point-and-shoot camera, attended all sorts of courses, and spent the money she earned on new photo equipment, even turning her grandmother's apartment into a real studio. Irina became so immersed in her work that she was taken to the maternity hospital directly from the photo studio when she was processing pictures. Less than a couple of weeks after the birth of her son, the young mother took up her camera again. Fortunately, her husband supports her in this, although he is far from art; he serves in the police.

The lens of Irina's camera captured girls and boys, brides and grooms, fellow countrymen and residents of nearby districts. She gradually transitioned from ordinary portrait photography to glossy as a portrait artist-photographer. Professional models began to appear in her shots more and more often, and her works started appearing in fashion magazines and catalogs. Acquaintances and collaborations with Belarusian fashion designers, designers, and makeup artists, including those from the capital, were established through social networks and word-of-mouth.

– Today, thanks to the Internet, great opportunities are open to photographers; it also serves as an exhibition platform, advertising, and PR. To find your place in the profession, to make a name for yourself, it is not at all necessary to live in the capital or another large city. If you really want something, you can achieve a lot, – Irina is convinced, and she confirms these words with her personal example. By the way, she put this very meaning into the shot that brought her victory: "Our past is in our hearts, our future is in our hands." She also has her own understanding of beauty, and she fully shares the opinion that there are no unattractive women.

– There are girls with outstanding facial features, but in everyday life, they might be considered unattractive, – says Irina. – A bump on the nose or freckles can be beautiful in their own way; it is even more interesting for me as a photographer to work with such models. The more you shoot, the more you want to find new faces with their own unique charm.

For a good shot, the interlocutor is convinced, it is not always necessary to have something extraordinary; it can be an ordinary person, an ordinary place; you just need to feel their beauty and uniqueness. As an example, consider the portraits of models shot by Irina Okuneva in her hometown, where seemingly familiar buildings, the city beach, and other views look intriguing, allowing one to look at Verkhnedvinsk from a new perspective.

Natalia Ryzhkova, "Vitebskiye vesti". Photos from the archive of Irina Okuneva.