Jiří Růžek

Jiří Růžek (, born 29 August 1967, in Litomerice, Czechoslovakia) is a Czech art photographer.

Life

Descends from a family without any artistic background. Until his age of 7 he lived in Litomerice, a pitoresque town in northern Bohemia. Then his family moved to a small village Libochovany, where he lived till the age of 22 (1989), when he went to serve in the Czechoslovak Army (was in the army during the Velvet Revolution). 1981-1985 studied at the Gymnazium in Litomerice, where he started to play bassguitar and sing in various rock, folk and jazz bands. He stopped playing with the bands in 2005. 1983-1988 studied lyrics and scenarios writing at the Jaroslav Jezek Conservatory.

In 1995, when he was 28, he took photographs for CD album of the Please Don't Care band. Later he took photos of various rock bands and asked his friend Martina Cyrkvova, who was a fashion model, if she could stand as a model for him.

In 2004 he moved from his hometown to Prague, Czech Republic, where he lives and work now.

Work

His work is mostly noted for the black-and-white artistic [...] portrait photographs. Since 2006 his photographs have been published in various printed or internet magazines and his prints are included in private collections around the world. In July 2009, his photograph named České středohoří (Czech Central Mountains - the title reminds the area where he was born) won the Grand Prize in Reflex magazine Best [...] Photo contest.

A member of Syndicate of the Czech Republic Photographers, Union of Czech Photographers and Czech Federation of Photographic Art.

Quotes

"The beauty of woman body goes hand in hand with the secrets of her soul and you can't see them separately, if you want to capture and express this complex called Woman. ... It can sound like a cliche, but if we respect Hendrix in modern music, we must respect Newton in modern photography. ... Do you think I already have my own style? :) I think it's a neverending story and when I'll think I have found it, maybe it will be the right time to stop taking photos." Quoted in The Universe d'Artistes interview, November 26, 2007