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Silver 2026 Editorial / Photo Essay

WOMEN WHO REMAIN

  • Photographer
    Michele Zousmer
  • Agency / Studio
    Michele Zousmer Photography
  • Prize
    Silver in Editorial / Photo Essay

How does history settle into the lives of women who have no control over it? In Romania and Bulgaria, many older women have lived through decades of communist rule. In Bosnia, women also lived under communism, but war broke out. The communist project shaped them gradually. War shattered them overnight. Yet today these women live similarly: alone, on small pensions, in abandoned villages, children far away, caring for graves instead of grandchildren, living in homes that carry memories more than people.

I am a humanitarian photographer. I use my camera to amplify the voices of individuals and communities often marginalized by society. I am drawn to the human experience, casting light on lives concealed in the shadows. My work exemplifies the transformative power of this medium as I search for fleeting instances of grace and beauty that persist even amid life’s most significant challenges. Through my lens, I become a storyteller, an advocate, and a conduit for change, inviting viewers to journey into the worlds I capture. In doing so, I illuminate the threads that weave us all together.

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