HOW I TRIED TO CONVINCE MY HUSBAND TO HAVE CHILDREN

by OLGA BUSHKOVA

Opening Reception Friday 23.10.2020

at 7 pm

“How I tried to convince my husband to have children” is the story of a young woman, of her deep desire to become to be a mother, of the intense and tireless dialogue she establishes with her husband, who, on the other side, is against the idea of having children. Olga Bushkova tries to convince her partner, Mikhail, through a tender, ironic, pungent, sometimes uncomfortable, dialogue. The dialogue is made of images and words: their parents’ family albums, photographs of their friends who had become parents,  a personal diary, recordings of their discussions on the subject and packs of birth control pills. Eventually, Olga covers the walls at home with these pictures so that her husband cannot help but be aware of the subject. The result is a sort of agreement between them: if Olga succeeds in having this material published as a book, thus establishing herself both as a photographer and as a professional, Mikhail will be ready to be a father. Olga’s work captivates the observer with moments of tender tension, of expectation, sometimes even of ruthless confrontation but it eventually leads to the realization of a sweet, intimate and very personal story.

(text by Angelica Rivetti)

“Olga Bushkova’s book “How I tried to convince my husband to have children”, is both a serious scream to solve a deep desire and a hilariously funny document. This makes it all together a very uncomfortable photo book. This is a blessing! It’s good to have more uncomfortable photo books. You can start with this one…”

(Erik Kessels)

Bio

Olga Bushkova (1988) is a Zürich-based artist. She was born and grew up in Rostov-on-Don, Russia. She graduated from Rostov State University with a Master degree in Applied Math. She began working with photography, both artistically and commercially, in 2011 when her partner and Olga moved to Zürich, Switzerland. To date Olga has produced two photo projects, “A Google Wife” (the book was published by Dalpine), and “How I tried to convince my husband to have children” (published by Witty Books). Olga’s books have been shortlisted or awarded at such festivals like: Prix Photoforum, Images Vevey Photobook Award, Unseen Dummy Award, FLIP Photobook Award, Author Book Reward at Les Rencontres de la photographie, Fiebre Dummy Award, Photoboox Award etc.

EXHIBITION OPENING | 23 October | Reservation:
https://www.eventbrite.it/e/122065885349