Nadja Wohlleben
Women Photograph
Berlin, Germany
I am an independent German photojournalist, documentary photographer and cultural anthropologist based in Berlin. A careful play of documentation and artistry, my work focuses on concepts of femininity, power and identity, bringing humanity to the foreground.
As an undergraduate I received a scholarship to study Journalism at New York University, then went on to complete my first Master's degree in Cultural Anthropology at Humboldt University in Berlin. Upon realising that photography was the ideal tool to combine my interests, I majored in Photojournalism at the University of Westminster in London, graduating with distinction in September 2013.
Selected clients: The New York Times, Financial Times, Neue Zürcher Zeitung, GEO, VOGUE, VICE, ZEIT Online, Spiegel Online, Days Japan, 6Mois, Wired, doc!photo magazine, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, HUCK, New Internationalist, The Observer, Chinese Photographer Magazine, UNHCR, No Means No Worldwide, and many others.
My photography gained international recognition through prestigious photo contests, such as the International Photography Awards, NPPA's Best of Photojournalism Awards, The Photography Gala Awards, or the Moskow International Foto Awards. In 2018, I was granted the VG Bild Kunst Grant, and previously was shortlisted for the FotoVisura Photography Grant and BURN Magazine's Emerging Photographer Grant. My photography has been exhibited in London, Barcelona and LA.
I am a member of Women Photograph and am represented by laif photo agency.
I'm available for assignments worldwide.
2020 - The Photo Annual (formerly PDN) , 2018 - International Photography Awards, 2018 - VG Bild-Kunst Grant, 2018 - International Photography Awards 'Harmony' , 2018 - NPPA Best of Photojournalism, 2016 - FotoVisura Photography Grant, 2016 - MOPLA - Month of Photography LA Open Call, 2016 - 'Family of Man' International Photography Awards, 2016 - The Emerging Photographer Fund / BURN Magazine, 2016 - Moscow International Foto Awards, 2016 - International Photography Awards, 2006 - Scholarship DAAD (German Academic Exchange), 2020 - International Photography Awards
- Arts
- Editorial
- Events
- Interview
- Portrait
- Reporting
- Sports
- Underwater
- Video capture
From the Series 'Shosho Jikinge'
Nadja Wohlleben
Nairobi, KENYA, February 28, 2017: Helen Wairimu, 106, is the oldest participant of the ‘Shosho Jikinge’ (Engl.: ‘Grandmother defend yourself’) group in the Korogocho township. A rape survivor, Helen has been training self-defense techniques with around 20 other ladies, aged between 55-106 years, for six years. In 2016, a heavy-set, young man came to Helen’s hut and raped her. Helen still participates in the class every week, eager to encourage the other women to train harder through her role as a survivor.
