‘Fairy Tale Of Russia’ By Frank Herfort

“…A waiting room is a waiting room, an office is an office. In Russia, in contrast, rooms are open to interpretation, many-layered and not so prettified”
Fascinated by the public spaces and the culture of waiting in Moscow, Saint Petersburg and other Russian cities, Frank Herfort creates a visual narrative around people and the settings. Surrounded by austere tones of old-fashioned Soviet buildings, the people in the photos sometimes seem as a part of the décor, sharing the gloomy yet romantic vibe of their surroundings. “In Western Europe everything is so neatly defined, so specific. A waiting room is a waiting room, an office is an office. In Russia, in contrast, rooms are open to interpretation, many-layered and not so prettified. And I also noticed that there seem to be many more people just sitting around in them. None of them seems at first sight to know what they are doing there. I tried to integrate people like that into my pictures,” writes Herfort of his experiences.