In a cultural moment dominated by selfies, algorithmic images, and hyper-curated online identities, her work insists on duration, attention, and emotional risk. She asks what it really means to be seen—and what it costs. As contemporary audiences grow increasingly skeptical of surface-level representation, von Zwehl’s psychologically rich, ethical practice feels relevant and urgently necessary.

Von Zwehl is currently working towards a solo exhibition in Milan, curated by Francesca Pinto, to be unveiled later this year. Pinto told The Wick: “Bettina Von Zwehl is one of the most interesting contemporary artists working with photography at the moment. Her works are at the same time visually compelling and deeply rooted in reflection and research. Over the course of her twenty-year career, she has constantly evolved and reinvented her visual language, whilst maintaining a unique and highly relevant voice. I am excited to be championing her work, both in the UK as well as internationally – we have great plans for her in Europe this year!”

What distinguishes Von Zwehl’s work is her sustained interest in the inner life. Drawing on psychoanalysis, literature, and philosophy, she treats the photographic encounter as a psychological event rather than a neutral act of observation. Many of her portraits involve extended sittings in which the subject’s defenses subtly erode, allowing moments of uncertainty, self-consciousness, or emotional exposure to surface. This process gives her images a distinctive intensity: the sitter is not performing a role so much as negotiating their own presence in front of the camera.

Von Zwehl’s practice is also consistently collaborative, and she frequently works with archival material into her projects. This interdisciplinary approach expands photography beyond the image itself, framing it as part of a broader inquiry into memory, identity, and relational dynamics. In an art world often driven by speed and spectacle, her slow, dialogic methods feel almost radical. “Most of my installations and photographic works are inspired by in depth research into Museum Collections and archives during artist residencies. This could be a single object one collection or various collections across multiple museums linked by a shared history.” She explains. “Back in the studio, I draw inspiration from my own collections of found objects and from the time I spend with the things I photograph. The hours of arranging, contemplating, handling, and illuminating things like feathers, sleeping pills, metal screws and crystals become a quiet ritual—one that allows those objects to reveal their spiritual value.” Her current research has taken her to tea’s “botanical roots and cultural footprint, exploring how this single plant has influenced art, philosophy, commerce, and daily life across Asia, Europe, and beyond for centuries…”