Zoom books
Book
Zoom books is a collection arising from three photo shoots during the Covid-19 lockdowns. Forced to remain in her flat in Dublin, Ireland, the photographer arranged video calls with three dancers located in Poland, Norway and Spain via Zoom. Thanks to modern technology, they maintained social ties and fostered new artistic endeavours. Her work portrays the strong and unshakeable will of artists and performers to pursue their art practice despite the isolating conditions of the pandemic. The more intimate photographs captured during their calls celebrate these dancers, stripped of their stage costumes, as they embrace their personal space under the sunlight of their respective countries.
This work is only available in British English.
first edition (2023)
100 x 150 mm (3.9” × 5.9”)
112 pages
100 copies
ISBN 978-2-9579763-3-1
Author’s note
‘I was inspired to collaborate with friends during the Covid-19 lockdowns. At the time, I was in Dublin, living alone in a small studio apartment. The restrictions were isolating. I couldn’t go beyond 5 km from my home or meet up with anyone. All of a sudden, everything was on Zoom — sending people a link was the ‘new normal’ way of hanging out, working, exercising, etc. So, why not a new way to make art?
While photography traditionally requires your subject to be nearby, restrictions and the shift to online interactions had changed how we perceived distance. I decided to take this as an opportunity to collaborate with friends in different locations around Europe:
Karianne, a dancer in Oslo, Norway.
Evelyn, a dancer in Poznan, Poland.
Pénélope, a model in Valencia, Spain’.
Catherine Walsh
Catherine Walsh is a former ballet dancer from Ireland who moved to New York City, United States, and retrained as a photographer shortly before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. Studying in art school during the first and second lockdowns, her determination to learn and create encouraged her to schedule photo shoots with dancers over Zoom. In 2023, she published the photographs captured during these calls in Zoom books together with éditions pépé. Her insatiable thirst for creativity, her experience as a performer, and her unique perspective on the world lead her to explore new creative endeavours, such as fashion styling and conceptual arts.