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b/w pictures can be found in the book: An Intimate Portrait of the Female Fitness Athlete. |
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BIOGRAPHY OF PICH BLAAKNES (based on a published biography) While majoring in biology and anthropology at Northwestern University, P.B. continued his photographic pursuits with great intensity. A tenure ship as teaching assistant in the photo-journalism department along with a job as photo editor of the yearbook allowed him to rethink his plans for medical school. This influenced his 1976 move to New York City and an attempt at professional photography. While taking several classes at the School of Visual Arts, P.B. tried his hand at portrait and fashion photography. After two years of assisting other photographers he found work, shooting for various clients as Celanese, INTERVIEW, The New York Post, Ladies Home Journal, and ESSENCE magazine. P.B. soon found his commercial assignments uninspiring and gave up his studio, working instead on personal projects. He began assisting again this time as a black and white printer for fashion photographer, Gordon Munro, who allowed him use of the studio and the freedom to pursue his own work and style. P.B. used his five years with Gordon Munro to experiment with many photographic disciplines. He began work in dance photography and a series on nudes of pregnant women. The dance photography quickly blossomed into a ten year relationship with The American Ballet Theatre. In this period he formed The Photo Group, an organization of photographers committed to photography as an art form. P.B. produced five exhibitions with The Photo Group including shows in Estonia and Russia. His interest in bodybuilding and fitness began at the end of his assisting career. Assignments in the field multiplied quickly and within a year he was traveling the country shooting the top bodybuilders and dancers in the world. The twin interests of fitness and dance led to an exploration of what was then the Soviet Union. During his ten trips to Russia, P.B. worked frequently with the Kirov Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet and Opera, and the Moscow Circus. This work on bodybuilders, dancers, and the Russian people have been the subject of numerous calendars, notecards, and four postcard books. P.B. has been working on three new projects including portraits of tattooed women, outdoor night nudes, and performance photographs at topless dance clubs. His clients include The New York Times, Dance Magazine, New York University Hospital, Hawaiian Tropic, The Jewish Home For the Aged, The Chamber Music Society, Nimbus Records, Warner Entertainment, and New Line Cinema. www.sweetmuscle.com |