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Ryszard Horowitz

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Ryszard Horowitz
Born(1939-05-05)May 5, 1939
Kraków
Occupationphotographer

Ryszard Horowitz (born 5 May 1939) was born in Kraków, Poland. At the age of only four months, he and his family were transported into a series of Nazi concentration camps following the German invasion of Poland. After years of imprisonment, he and his parents survived the horrors of the work camps. Ryszard, among the youngest known survivors of Auschwitz, was only five years old when the Russian Army liberated him.[1]

Horowitz and his family were one of the few Jewish families to be able to return to Kraków. As a child, Ryszard grew up with Roma Ligocka and Roman Polanski. It was his time spent living with Polanski, that stoked Horowitz's interest in the arts. He later studied painting at the Academy of Fine Arts, where he became interested in photography, particularly the work of American photographers.

In 1956, Poland experienced a brief political and cultural thaw. The government encouraged new art forms, granting subsidies to people practicing their crafts in their country. Kraków became a booming center for artistic exploration as theater, filmmaking and painting were everywhere. Avant-garde jazz was of particular interest to Horowitz. He has photographed jazz legends such as Dave Brubeck, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Paul Desmond, Duke Ellington, Aretha Franklin, Coleman Hawkins, Carmen McRae, Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk, Gerry Mulligan, Sonny Rollins, Jimmy Rushing, and more. Horowitz witnessed the jazz revival first-hand.

Ryszard immigrated to the United States in 1959. He enrolled at the Pratt Institute in New York City, where he later received a scholarship to apprentice under Alexey Brodovitch. Honing his craft in the industry of editorial design and photography, Ryszard saw the appeal of commercialism in art. This reinforced his passion for photography to be his career, as well as his hobby.

After graduating from Pratt in 1962, Horowitz took several jobs with film and design companies, including a stint as art director for Grey Advertising. But in 1967 he decided to open his own photography studio. Horowitz's photos have been exhibited, published and collected, and he has received multiple awards for his work. Horowitz has been recognized as a pioneer of special effects photography prior to digital technology, and has updated his techniques as technologies have changed.

Awards and recognition

  • 2014 - Commander's Cross with Star awarded by president of the Republic of Poland
  • 2014 - Honorary Citizen of Kraków
  • 2013 - PhD from Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts
  • 2012 - Doctor Honoris Causa Awarded by Wroclaw Academy of Fine Arts
  • 2010 - Doctor Honoris Causa Awarded by Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts
  • 2008 - Gloria Artis Gold Medal of Merit to Culture Awarded by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Poland
  • 2002 - INTERNATIONAL GUTENBERG AWARDS (Montreal, Canada) Gold Medal
  • 1996 - OFFICER CROSS OF MERIT awarded by president of the Republic of Poland
  • 1991 - First Annual One APA Advertising Photography Award, Best in Special Effects Photography
  • 1991 - Kodak's VIP Image Search, ACM SIGGRAPH, Best in Show. Best in Application/Digital Photography
  • 1991 - First Annual One APA Advertising Photography Award - Best in Special Effects Photography
  • 1983 - ADWEEK All-American Photographer of the Year
  • 1983 - Andy Award of Merit
  • 1982 - "Gold Caddie", Best in Car Advertising, Detroit
  • 1978 - Chicago '78, 5 Certificates of Excellence
  • 1976 - Creativity '76, Certificate of Distinction
  • 1975 - Creativity '75, Certificate of Distinction
  • 1974 - The One Club, Merit Award
  • 1973 - The One Club, Gold Award & Merit Award
  • 1973 - Chicago 4, Certificate of Excellence
  • 1973 - Philadelphia Art Directors Club, Annual Award of Excellence
  • 1973 - CA-73 Award of Excellence
  • 1972 - Art Directors Club of New York, Certificate of Merit
  • 1971 - AIGA, Certificate of Excellence
  • 1971 - Creativity '71, Certificate of Distinction
  • 1970 - Art Directors Club of New York, Gold Medal
  • 1967 - Art Directors Club of New York, Award of Distinctive Merit
  • 1964 - Art Directors Club of New York, Award of Distinctive Merit
  • 1961 - Art Directors Club of New York, Certificate of Merit

References

  1. ^ Martin, Douglas. "When Holocaust Lives With Parents", The New York Times, April 29, 1995. Accessed February 2, 2009.
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