Rafal Maleszyk has been named Hasselblad Master in Fine Arts 2014
He has travelled extensively, translating journeys and experience into a refined and creative body of work that expresses the sublime beauty of the natural world. Important motifs include cityscapes, ecological permanence, destruction, the power of nature, and the ephemeral nature of life. As well, the subtleties of texture, pattern, and light all play a significant role in transforming the genre of nature photography. Today, the artist’s theatrically beautiful Plastic series responds to confrontation of pollution and nature, the dance of debris with the grandeur of oceanic and desert terrains. Rafal lives and works in Hawaii.
2016 Los Angeles Center of Photography, dnj Gallery USA
2016 Black Box Gallery, Focus:Black and White, Portland, USA
2016 Del Rio Council for the Arts, Texas , USA
2016 White Stone Gallery , Philadelphia USA
2016 George A. Spiva Center for the Arts
2014 Michael H.Kellicut International Photo Show
2014 Photokina , Colone Germany
2013 Waikiki Art Gallery, Hawaii
2012 Contemporary Photography in Hawaii
2012 Griffin Museum of Photography , USA
2011 George A. Spiva Center for the Arts
2011 Contemporary Photography in Hawaii
2010 Poland International Photo
Hasselblad Masters Volume 4
Internationale Kunst Heute 2017
Silvershotz Australia
Lens Work USA
Fotographia Italy
Adore Noir Canada
International Masters of Photography Vol 2 USA
Black and white magazine USA
Camera Obscura USA
Black+White Photography UK
Popular Photography USA
Art Direct USA
PH Magazine Canada
Black & White Through Creative Eyes , United Emirates
I814 Magazine USA
Creative Quarterly USA
Digitalis Foto Hungary
2014 Hasselblad Master Fine Arts : Winner
2012 Prix de la Photographie, Paris : Gold Award
2012 Black and White Magazine Single Image Contest : Silver Award
2012 Contemporary Photography in Hawaii : 1st Place
2011 Photo SPIVA : 1st Place
2011 Black & White Magazine Portfolio : Merit Award
2011 Camera Obscura Journal : 1st Place
2011 Prix de la Photographie, Paris : Silver award
2011 Contemporary Photography in Hawaii : Exhibition
2011 Foto Igrzyska Photo Olympics : Finalist
2011 International Aperture Awards : Silver Award
2010 The Worldwide Photography Gala Awards : Silver Award
2010 Poland National Photography Contest : 2nd Place
George Spiva Center for the Arts
Griffing Museum of Photography
Growing up in southern Poland, Maleszyk spent his childhood and early years in post-communist Poland. He first started exploring photography using a 35mm Kiev on his fourteenth birthday, and learnt how to develop black and white prints in the dark room set up by his father in the family kitchen.
From 1997 onwards, he traveled widely in Europe, Scandinavia and the United States, including Norway, Majorca, Vienna, the Netherlands and San Francisco, places that have inspired his artistic work.
In 1999, he worked for a German artist in Mallorca as a stone sculpture apprentice, where he developed his sensitivity towards textures and form. He later took up painting when studying at the College of Marin in California. The training in fine art has helped him with the craft of composition and experimentation.
In 2009, he moved to the Oahu island of Hawaii. He now works on photography projects, mostly Plastic Landscapes, specializing in large format prints series using a digital medium format Hasselblad camera. To date, his photographic portfolio covers landscapes from many countries including USA, Canada, Poland, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and El Salvador.
