Szymon Brodziak

Szymon Brodziak - born in 1979 in Poznan, is a Polish photographer who specializes in black and white photography. He has gained international recognition and is highly regarded in his hometown. In 2019, Brodziak was named the best black and white photographer by OneEyeLand. He is the youngest artist and the only Pole to have his works exhibited at the Museum of Photography – Helmut Newton Foundation in Berlin.
Brodziak focuses mainly on women and draws inspiration from various locations to create his monochromatic visions. His work has been described as resembling frames from movies that were never made. His motto, "What you see is who you are", reflects his approach to the world, people, and the inherent beauty in them. Brodziak follows five principles: consistency, determination, authenticity, effectiveness, and humility, which guide both his professional and personal life and contribute to his success.
==Early life==
Despite studying economics and obtaining a master's degree in the field, Brodziak shifted his career from working in a family company importing wine to pursuing photography. In 2015, he became the first Polish photographer and the youngest artist to have his work exhibited at the Helmut Newton Museum of Photography in Berlin. 
Since 2013, Brodziak has operated his photography gallery, Brodziak Gallery, first in Warsaw and then in Poznan. The gallery hosts regular exhibitions, avant-garde meetings, and unique events.
Brodziak's photographic journey began during his economic studies when he co-founded the Fotosekta photography club. His first solo exhibition, featuring portraits of his partner and muse Ania, took place in 2002. Subsequently, he presented a daring project titled "Esc – Enslaved Liberated Women" in 2003.
In 2011, Brodziak's work gained recognition from June Newton, the widow of Helmut Newton, marking a pivotal moment in his career. His first photography album, "Brodziak ONE," was published in 2014 and contains over 300 monochromatic photos from his first decade as a professional photographer.
Brodziak has received numerous international awards, including the Fashion TV Photographers Award in 2013 and the Johnnie Walker Keep Walking Award in 2005. He has also been recognized in Europe and the USA for his outstanding work in black-and-white photography.
==Album "What you see is who you are"==
His latest publication, "What you see is who you are", provides insight into his creative process, offering a different perspective on his work. The album project "What you see is who you are" received the Gold Medal (Book: Cover) and two Bronze Medals (Book: Fine Art & Other) in the prestigious PX3 Prix de la Photographie Paris 2019 competition. It also received an Honorable Mention in the International Photography Awards 2019 competition in the Book: Fine Art category in the USA. Brodziak's artistic credo, "What you see is who you are", invites artists to engage with his work and aims to create black-and-white worlds that tell stories captured in photographic frames, evoking emotions and capturing the beauty that enriches our lives.
==Brodziak Academy==
In 2023, Szymon established the Brodziak Academy with the aim of supporting other photography enthusiasts and sharing his valuable knowledge and 25 years of experience. One of the offerings of the Academy is Szymon Brodziak's online course "Master of Creation", which aims to address the questions he had as a young creator: where to find inspiration, how to create stunning photographs, how to turn a vision into reality, where to find models and a crew, how to manage a photoshoot, how to build a personal brand, and how to become an effective, recognizable, and fulfilled creator.
"Master of Creation" aims to stimulate sensitivity, inspire, and motivate individuals to achieve personal mastery. Szymon strongly believes that the type of person you are largely defines the type of artist you are. Hence, in addition to strictly photographic issues, the course includes references to personal development. After the theoretical part, the author moves on to practical aspects based on the "Brodziak Creative Process". Students are taken to 4 different photo sets, where practical aspects such as local vision, communication with the model, and the phenomenon of "creative synergy" in the production team are discussed. Then students meet with the author in the digital darkroom, where he selects the material and, step by step, processes the selected photo from the shoot. 
A unique advantage of the "Master of Creation" online course is that each graduate has the opportunity to submit their photographs to the Top 10 Masters of Creation competition. The final works are selected by a jury (in 2023, the jury included Lidia Popiel, Adam Pulwicki, and Szymon Brodziak) and presented in the professional art gallery Brodziak Gallery in Poznań. The exhibition lasts two weeks and is accessible to the public and collectors, who have the opportunity to purchase the winning photographs, providing another dimension in which the Masters of Creation succeed by selling their works of art.
==Exhibitions==
===Selected individual exhibitions===
* Not a bit, Terminal Photography Gallery, Kraków 2002[19]. • Esc – Enslaved Liberated Women, Przesada Gallery, Olkusz 2004
* Esc – Enslaved Liberated Women, Zero Gallery, Berlin, Germany, 2004
* Femmine Stories in a Pill, Polonia Palace, Warsaw, 2010
* Hot Spa Story, Hotelarnia, Puszczykowo, 2010
* Martini Cava, Cava, Warsaw, 2011
* Second Life, Concordia Design, Poznań, 2013
* Fashion is Dead, Sopot Art&Fashion Week, Sopot 2013
* Menda feat. Leonora Jimenez, InterContinental Costa Rica, San Jose, 2013
* Brodziak One – Italy, La. Vi., Rome, 2014
* Brodziak One – Germany, The Artroom, Cologne, 2014
* Artist Proofs by Szymon Brodziak, Vivid Gallery, Wrocław, 2015
* Brodziak One – Poland, Leica Gallery, Warsaw, 2015
* Brodziak One – Austria, Atelier Jungwirth, Graz 2015
* Brodziak Spaces, Forum Spaces, Kraków, 2016
* Capturing Beauty, Nadwiślańskie Museum, Kazimierz Dolny 2017
* Du bist was du siehst, Leica Gallery, NRW, 2018
* What you see is who you are, Szczecin Philharmonic, Szczecin, 2018
* What you see is who you are, State Art Gallery, Sopot 2019
* What you see is who you are, Stary Browar, Poznań 2019
* Qhat you see is who you are, Marina Art Gallery, Gródek nad Dunajcem, 2020-2021
* What you see is who you are, Klinika Uszyńscy, Warsaw, 2022
===Selected group exhibitions===
* Prix de la Photographie Paris, L’Espace Dupon, Paris, France, 2010
* Xto Image Awards, Robert Bergmann Gallery, Santa Monica, USA, 2011
* Prix de la Photographie Paris, L’Espace Dupon, Paris, France, 2011
* Prix de la Photographie Paris, L’Espace Dupon, Paris, France, 2012
* Look on Fashion, Imaginarium Gallery, Łódź, 2012
* Festival International dl al Photographie de Mode, Palm Beach Casino, Cannes, France, 2013
* Motion to Light, Snap!, Orlando, USA, 2013
* 2sq meters of Fashion, Lookout Gallery, Warszawa, 2014
* Vintage Nouveau, Snap!, Orlando, USA, 2014
* Couture Culture, Snap!, Orlando, USA, 2015
* NEWTON.HORVAT.BRODZIAK, Helmut Newton Foundation, Museum of Photography, Berlin, 2015
* Cracow Fashion Week, Plac Szczepański, Kraków, 2016
* Le Salon, Snap!, Orlando, USA, 2016
* From FF Gallery Collection and not Only, FF Gallery, Łódź, 2016
* Prix de la Photographie Paris, Espace Beaurepaire, Paris, 2016
==Prizes and achievements==
===The year 2002===
* "Pani" Magazine, Photography Competition „Woman in the Lens" - First place
The year 2005
Johnnie Walker Keep Walking Award
* For constantly making dreams come true and the passion for setting new paths in search of beauty.
===The year 2010===
Prix de la Photographie Paris
* Gold medal in the Advertising category, for the Noti Girls campaign.
* Gold medal in the Beauty category, for the Good Time Day Spa campaign.
* Gold medal in the Nude category, for the Amberline Windows campaign.
* Gold medal in the Calendar category, for the Media Markt calendar (2009).
* Silver medal in the Calendar category, for the Platinum Calendar (Orlen Oil).
* Bronze medal for "Kajdaniki", an advertising campaign for Instal Projekt.
* Honorable Mention in the Advertising category, for the "IP Heaters" campaign for Instal Projekt.
* Honorable Mention in the Reportage category, for the "Ubójona" photo series.
* Honorable Mention in the Nude category, for "Polowanie", a session for Playboy magazine. 
International Photography Awards
* Honorable Mention in the Beauty category, for "Spa Story".
* Honorable Mention in the Calendar category, for "2010 Platnum Calendar", Orlen Oil calendar.
* Honorable Mention in the Fashion category, for the campaign for Tifia.
===The year 2011===
Prix de la Photographie Paris
* Silver medal in the Calendar category, for the Media Markt calendar (Portuguese edition).
* Silver medal in the Nude category, for the Media Markt calendar (Portuguese edition).
* Silver medal in the Product category, for the advertising campaign for Charade Jewels.
* Silver medal in the Fashion category, for the Bizuu Spring 2011 advertising campaign.
London International Creative Competition
* Honorable Mention in the Photography category for the advertising campaign for Charade Jewels
===The year 2012===
Prix de la Photographie Paris
* Gold medal in the Calendar category, for the Ferroli calendar.
* Gold medal in the Fashion category, for the Bizuu fall winter 2011 campaign.
* Silver medal in the Product category, for the Martini Cava advertising campaign.
* Silver medal in the Fashion category, for the Bizuu fall winter 2011 advertising campaign.
* Bronze medal in the Fashion category, for the Bizuu Bowling Club advertising campaign.
* Bronze medal in the Fashion category, for Prophecy XII for Idoll Mag, New York.
* Bronze medal in the Book category, for the Naughty Girls album.
* Honorable Mention in the Album category, for the photo “Ana”, the cover of “Brodziak One”. 
* Honorable Mention in the Press category, for the Leo vol.1 session.
* Honorable Mention in the Nude category, for the untitled photo.
===The year 2013===
FashionTV
* The title of the best black and white campaign photographer in the world.
London International Creative Competition
* Honorable Mention in the Photography category for Leonora Jimenez's 2013 calendar.
===The yearr 2016===
Prix de la Photographie Paris
* Title of Best Advertising Photographer of the Year.
* Gold medal in the Advertising category, for the "Rolls-Royce Wraith" advertising campaign.
* Gold medal in the Fashion category, for the "Free as a bird, feminine as Bizuu" advertising campaign.
* Silver medal in the Press category, for the sessions for the Bizuu brand entitled "Free as a bird, feminine as Bizuu".
* Bronze medal in the Calendar category, for the Rossmann calendar.
* Bronze medal in the Other category, for the publication InPosnania.
Black & White Spider Awards, USA
* First place in the Fashion category, for the photo "Crash Test".
* Second place in the Advertising category, for the Marmorin advertising campaign.
* Third place in the Photographer of the Year category.
* International Photography Awards: First place in the Fashion category for the campaign "Free as a bird, feminine as Bizuu".
===The year 2019===
Prix de la Photographie Paris
* Gold Medal and two bronze medals for the album design.
World’s Top 10 / One Eyeland
* First place in the category: best creator of black and white photography. 
===The year 2020===
All About Photo
* Particular Merit Mentioned in the “Portrait” category 
One Shot: Movement/ International Photography Awards, USA
* 6 Honorable Mentions 
===Year 2021===
Prix de la Photographie Paris
* Bronze Winner in the Advertising/Music category
* Bronze Winner in the Advertising/Automotive category
* 4 Honorable Mentions 
MonoVisions Awards
* 1st Place Winner in the Portrait category 
* 5 Honorable Mentions
New York Photography Awards
* 4 Silver Awards
Tokyo International Foto Awards
* Silver Awardthe in the Fine Art category
* 3 Honorable Mentions
===Year 2022===
MUSE Photography Awards
* 2 x Platinium Winner in B&W Photography - Fine Art. category
* 3 x Gold Winner in B&W Photography - Fine Art category
* Honorable Mention in B&W Photography – Portrait category
European Photography Awards
* Platinium Winner in B&W Photography - Fine Art category
* 3 times Gold Winner in B&W Photography - Fine Art, Nude categories
* 5 Honorable Mentions
===Year 2023===
MonoVisions Awards
* 11 Honorable Mentions
===Year 2024===
London Photography Awards
* Platinum Winner in Black & White Photography – Adventure category
* Gold Winner in Black & White Photography – Others Category
* Gold Winner in Fine Art Photography – Silhouettes category
* Gold Winner in Fine Art Photography – Fashion category
* 15 Honorable Mentions
MonoVisions Awards
* 3rd Place Winner in the Nude category
* 4 Honorable Mentions
ReFocus Awards
* Second Place in category: Conceptual
* Gold Winner in categoryi: Abstract
* Gold Winner in category: Fashion & Beauty
* Gold Winner in category: Conceptual
* Silver Winner in category: Fine Art
* Silver Winner in category: Conceptual
* Silver Winner in category: Fashion & Beauty
* Bronze Winner in category: Fine Art
* Bronze Winner in category: Fashion & Beauty
* 3 Honorable Mentions in category: Fashion & Beauty
Category:1979 births
Category:People from Poznań 
Category:Polish photographers
Category:Polish people