Spring love

Philip Provily studied at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy School of Arts in Amsterdam. He graduated in 1994 with a series called "Still life" associating objects and body parts in black and white photography. He was inspired by the Dutch and Belgian painters Vermeer, Rembrandt and Magritte.

After a trip to New York, Philip Provily decided he wanted to study at the Cooper Union School of Arts in Manhattan. He discovered the work of the photographer Irving Penn in an Art gallery, his wonderful palladium prints... and treatment of light in black and white. His passion for natural light was born... When he was assistant to the artist photographer Rineke Dijkstra he learned the use of the technical camera. After the series Still life, he started to make color portraits.

First collaboration with Dutch gallerist Willem van Zoetendaal in Amsterdam, who invited him to contribute to the project "L'Oeil du Nord" at the Dutch Cultural Institute during the Month of Photography year 2000 in Paris. Eleven contemporary Dutch photographers were invited to show their view of Paris. During the project, he fell in love with Paris and decided to go back six months later for a one-year residency in collaboration with a Dutch company based in Paris. He proposed them two exhibition projects.

It was the start of a new life :
Philip Provily has been living and working in Paris since... He discovered the pleasure of making portraits for European press and companies. His Dutch and French collaborations continue with Pennings gallery in The Netherlands and with Joëlle Kem Lika gallery in France.