By: PRME

Viktoriia Margolina is one of the brightest stars in contemporary photography. She currently resides in Los Angeles and continues her career there.

Her artistry spans a variety of genres. Viktoriia says that every artist, performer, and creator goes through several periods in their creative journey, with countless phases. Margolina’s early work can be described as “A Fascination with Family Values.” Initially, she captured couples, the start of relationships, and new life in young families. These weren’t just staged photos; each image reflected the artist’s profound insight into the importance of trust, sincerity, and love in creating a family. This can be seen in the restrained yet noble and calming color palette she chose and in the poses of the couples she photographed. As Viktoriia notes, it was always crucial for her to convey the connection and closeness of people through their gazes and body language.

Margolina is a self-made talent. She has worked with popular stars and is now preparing to sign contracts with international glossy magazines. The prestigious Fashion TV Awards awarded her “Best Photographer” in 2022. With three solo exhibitions and nearly 15 years of experience in photography, her credentials are impressive.

The Perfect Timing

The 2000s were a revolutionary time for photography, with technological advancements radically changing the industry. Traditional photo studios lost their original significance, and the era of diverse studio photoshoots began. Viktoriia Margolina was a pioneering force in this new era, quickly rising with her extraordinary talent. While others hesitated, Viktoriia stormed into the industry, achieving professional heights and captivating the hearts of millions of photography lovers.

Photo Courtesy: Margolina’s Archive

Creative Beginnings

Viktoriia’s passion for photography began in her childhood. She recalls, “I could shoot 200 rolls of film a year. I was once told this was comparable to professional photographers.” She learned to develop her photos and mastered film photography at a young age. By her teenage years, her photos were already professional in quality, though she initially took them for personal enjoyment without exhibiting her work.

Everything changed when local publications showed interest in her photographs. Soon, her work appeared in several regional newspapers, and she held exhibitions in trendy bars, capturing more and more celebrities. She won “Celebrity Photographer of the Year” at the prestigious MusicBox Gold Awards in 2019. By this point, her name was well-known in St. Petersburg, Moscow’s photography communities, and soon beyond.

Viktoriia attributes her love for photography to her hometown, St. Petersburg, Russia’s cultural capital, which is steeped in creative spirit. Growing up in such an artistic environment, it would have been a crime not to develop her creative abilities. She photographed extensively and transformed from a girl with a camera into a star of fashion and portrait photography.

Initially, Margolina collaborated with photo studios, creating genre photos. Her work was so refined that she began receiving an increasing number of private orders, eventually finding her schedule booked months in advance. She decided to leave the studio and pursue a solo career.

“A photographer has a million responsibilities: they are a retoucher, a producer of their shoots, and simply a punctual specialist who delivers work on time,” Margolina shared.

Margolina’s Revolution

In professional circles, contemporary photographers are often crudely divided into commercial and creative camps. Viktoriia defined this narrative, becoming the first influential photographer to reject such stereotypes. “Margolina’s Revolution” is a popular term in the photography world that began circulating in 2018. Followers of this revolution embrace Viktoriia’s philosophy, refusing to pigeonhole themselves into any one category. They strive to infuse creativity into commercial shoots and earn good money from creative projects.

Followers of this movement do not believe in the concept of “starving artists.” Like Viktoriia, they believe that “an artist must be well-fed” to have more energy, motivation, and resources for creativity. “Maybe many years ago it was normal for creative photographers to work for food and art, but now it’s irrelevant and even impossible. Life has become much faster and more expensive. For photographers to create and share beauty with the world, they first need to meet their basic needs. For creative people like me, art and recognition are also basic needs, so we need to think about both commercial and creative development. They are equally important, and we shouldn’t have to choose between them,” Viktoriia explained to our editorial team.

Recent Triumphs

Viktoriia’s professional career features three significant milestones—her exhibitions. All held in St. Petersburg, these took place within just two years, an impressive feat for any photographer. While others spend a lifetime collecting their works, Viktoriia created masterpieces with enviable regularity. This dedication is essential in the 21st century, where attention is easily lost, and one must constantly strive to stay relevant. Viktoriia’s extraordinary talent gives her a strong reason to remain in the spotlight.

Her work transcends genre boundaries, with her photographs being notably diverse and profound. Major themes in her work include geometry, an exploration of horizons, shapes, landscapes, and scenery; horses, stemming from her childhood love of equestrianism; and children, capturing the essence and depth of “the flowers of life.” Portraiture holds a central place in Margolina’s work, as she believes every person is beautiful and aims to convey this in her romantic and joyful images.

Jury and Mentorship

Since 2021, Viktoriia has been actively involved in socially significant projects, helping young specialists reach new levels of mastery. She has twice served as a guest lecturer for the Aesthetic HUNTERS course, an international photography project aimed at fostering aesthetic development and creative freedom. This project, under the aegis of the Institute of Aesthetic Development, Creative Freedom, and Self-Realization, has been running for over ten years, hosting exhibitions in Russia, the CIS, and the USA.

As a coach, Margolina provided professional reviews of student projects, utilizing her extensive experience. Viktoriia’s main goal was to inspire aspiring photographers to create bright and memorable images. This project has been covered by major publications across the country. Viktoriia has also twice served as an honorary judge for exhibitions at an art gallery, evaluating the work of photographers from around the world.

A Notable Exhibition

This spring, Viktoriia held an exhibition in Los Angeles titled “Distinguished Beauty,” which ran for a month. The exhibition showcased her incredible talent and left a lasting impression on the art community. Her ability to capture the essence of beauty in every shot continues to astonish and inspire, solidifying her status as an extraordinary talent in the world of photography.

Published by: Nelly Chavez