Photographer Anita Rusin is the Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of this photo essay. From the project ‘Salve Femina’. To see Anita ’s body of work, click on any photograph.

I am deeply inspired by women’s stories. In this project, I attempt to give voice to the experiences of women living within a patriarchal system.

It is a system we endure collectively, passed down through generations—perceived differently by each of us, and often too heavy or too intimate to speak about, even among ourselves.
Over the course of more than a year working on this project, I immersed myself in my own family history: in archival photo albums holding portraits of my mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. Their portraits—posed, stylized, often the only photograph taken in their lifetime—became a point of departure for my reflection on the disciplining of women.
Though the visual language of the project evokes an earlier era and the aesthetics of historical portrait photography, I use contemporary self-portraiture and place myself at the center—as a representative—because the process of disciplining, silencing, and erasing women is far from over.

Salve Femina is also my personal hymn of praise, a tribute to the brave, strong, and radiant women (radiant not only in appearance) who have crossed my path, shared their stories, and offered me their strength.

Anita Rusin (Poland) arttherapist. I completed an artistic photography course with Dr. Karol Krukowski, completed with a diploma thesis "Salve femina" and a group exhibition in Sokołowsko in 2022. I publish on the website of the Italian Vogue, I am a laureate of the following competitions: Monovision Photography Awards 2022, Monochrome Photography Awards 2022, my diploma project was partly presented at the collective exhibition Polish Women Photographers 2022, which is still presented in various cities of Poland.

All images and text © Anita Rusin