Elisabeth Ajtay

Spending a childhood in Transylvania/Romania behind the iron curtain, Elisabeth Ajtay grew up in the democratic society of Western Germany, leaving two years for Hungary, back in the days, when the changes after the revolutions in Eastern Europe were still in progress.

She received a Diploma in Communications Design in Dortmund /Germany and a Master of Fine Arts in San Francisco/CA.

Her life was and is predominated by traveling. Passing different cultures and nations by arrival and departure are the characteristics of her life. As an unrooted person she welcomes the nomadic presence and reflects the experience of the mobility of the body and soul and its consequences within her artistic work. Ajtay constantly questions the appearance of objects, states of mind. Describing herself as a transnational is an attempt to get beyond labeling regarding race and nationality.

Elisabeth Ajtay's work has been shown and published nationally and internationally since 2003.

CV

EDUCATION

2011-13
◦ San Francisco Art Institute, Master of Fine Arts/Photography, San Francisco CA
2000-06
◦ University of Applied Sciences Dortmund/FH Dortmund), Master of Science, Communications Design/Photography, Dortmund, Germany
1998 -2000
Residence in Budapest
◦ Studied in the fields of dance, photography, drawing and painting at Tamás Kopasz et al.

SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2016    
◦ Penumbral States, Alter Space - Peephole Gallery, San Francisco CA
◦ moonABC, Savernack Street Gallery, San Francisco CA
2014 
◦ Babel, Ramon‘s Tailor, San Francisco CA
2013
◦ Exported Dreams, Imported Desires, Ramon’S Tailor, San Francisco CA2012◦ Ginnungagap/Yawning Void, Still Lights Gallery, San Francisco CA2011◦ Analogue Memories, Union Gewerbehof, Dortmund, Germany
◦ The Scent of the West, curated by Simone Czech, Galerie 143, Dortmund, Germany

GROUP EXHIBITIONS, excerpt
2017  
 ◦ Echofluxx 17, Festival of New Media, Art and Music, Prague, Czech Republic
 ◦ Alchemic Body - Fire, Air, Water, Earth, Laura Haber Gallery, Buenos Aires, Argentina
 ◦ 28 Day Cycle, curated by Pamela Belknap & Ingrid Wells, Studio 110 Projects, Sausalito CA
2016    
◦ Elisabeth Ajtay, Brad Woodville & shesaidred, curated by Ann Jastrab, RAYKO Gallery, San Francisco CA
◦ The Sea Has No Boundaries, Stories of Travellers and Dreamers, Venice Vending Machine, curated by Marina Moreno, Hamburg, Germany
◦ Instant, Refusalon Gallery, San Francisco CA
2015    
◦ Transmissions, Blue Star Contemporary Art Museum, San Antonio TX
2014    
◦ Bay Area Now 7, with B.A.A.W.A. Bay Area Art Workers Alliance, Yerba Buena Center For the Arts, San Francisco CA
◦ More or less Freedom?, 7th International Art Moves Festival, curated by Susan O’Malley, Christine Wong Yap and Joanna Górska, Torun PL
◦ Times Square, Billobard Display, see.me, New York NY
◦ if…, curated by Cléa Massiani, Google Headquarters, Mountain View CA
◦ M.A.C.H.I.N.E. (Master of Arts Collective in Higher Idea Navigation and Exploration), Gallery West, University Texas at Arlington TX
◦ Global Mission of Art - Reversality, project curated by Farhad Bahram, Geroges Hattab, Kevin Nazar (http://www.globalmissionofart.com/i... Group Study, curated by Shmulik Krampf, Cléa Massiani, Refusalon, San Francisco CA
◦ Art by Telephone…, Recalled, curated by Sébastien Pluot and Fabien Vallos, Art Center of La Panacée, Montpellier, France
◦ Juried Exhibition 2014, curated by Diana L. Daniels, Associate Curator for Contemporary Art at the Crocker Museum Sacramento, Center for Photographic Art, Carmel CA
2013
◦ Small Works, curated by Mary Negro, Trestle Gallery, Brooklyn NY
◦ Currency, Final MFA show, The Mint, San Francisco CA
◦ Sledgehammer Constitution, curated by Christina Elliott, Diego Rivera Gallery, San  Francisco CA
◦ Merkle Dir Was, 15 Jahre Galerie Merkle, curated by Verena Zeiner, Galerie Merkle, Stuttgart, Germany
◦ Art by Telephone… Recalled, curated by Sébastien Pluot and Fabien Vallos, Centre National Édition Art et Images-CNEAI, Chatou, France2012
◦ Art by Telephone… Recalled, curated by Sébastien Pluot and Fabien Vallos, CAPC musée d’art contemporain de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
◦ Rob The Noisebank, THE LAB, San Francisco CA
◦ Nomads, Diego Rivera Gallery, San Francisco, United States
◦ Then and Now : Photography at the San Francisco Art Institute, 1945-2013, curated by Toni Gentilli, Diego Rivera Gallery, San Francisco CA
◦ Not Kansas, Photographers Explore Their Own Worlds, curated by Ann Jastrab, RayKo, San Francisco CA
2011
◦ BAN6 Slide Slam, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco CA
2010
◦ Moving Bikes, collaboration with Katrin Keller, RWE Ruhrtal-Rad Weg, Arnsberg, Germany
◦ Zuhause/At Home, Bibliothek Scharnhorst, Dortmund, Germany
◦ 4. F/STOP Leipzig, Photo Festival, Leipzig, Germany2009◦ inSPIRACJE, 5th Festival for Visual Arts curated by Krzysztof Ked Olszewski, Szeczin, Poland
◦ raum-fluss-vektoren/space-flow-vectors, photographic installation,
KVWL-Kassenärztlicher Verband Westfalen-Lippe, Dortmund, Germany
◦ The Christmas Photo Album, curated by Tina Schelhorn, Gallery, Moscow, Russia

HONORS AND AWARDS
2013
◦ Juried Winner, Artslant 5th Showcase in Photography
◦ 1st place, Paul Sack Building Award in Black & White Photography San Francisco, CA
2011-13
◦ Scholarship of Merit, San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco CA2012◦ Honorable Mention, Paul Sack Building Award, San Francisco CA
◦ Honorable Mention, PX3-Prix de la Photographie Paris, Paris, France2009◦ Semi Finalist, Photofestival Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
2005
◦ Material grant, Kodak, Köln, Germany2002◦ 3rd place-Skin Aesthetics and Fascination, 2. Hamburger Triennale der Photographie, Hamburg, Germany

PUBLICATIONS (excerpt)
2017    
◦ “Interdependent Independence” and “Floating” and a bit of history, by Ann Jastrab, www.all-about-photo.com (2017-03-17)
◦ The (art) Scene Podcast, Interview with Louis Vargas, San Francisco CA
2015  
 ◦ Reversality, Global Mission of Art book publication; The book will be part of the collection at the Sazmanab - Center for Contemporary Art, Teheran IRN and ICP - International Center for Photography, New York NY
◦ Everyday Life Connects The Dots in New Bluestar Exhibits, Dan Goddard, San Antonio Current
2014     
◦ M.A.C.H.I.N.E. (Master of Arts Collective in Higher Idea Navigation and Exploration), exhibition catalogue, University Texas at Arlington TX
2013
◦ Currency, exhibition catalogue, San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco CA
2012
◦ Sehstücke, Kunstwerke für die KVWL, KVWL Dortmund, FH Dortmund, Dortmund, Germany ◦ MFA NOW 2012 Archive Project, catalogue, Root Division, San Francisco CA
2010
◦ Amtsblatt des Ministeriums für Schule und Weiterbildung 10/2010, Schule Nordrhein-Westfalen, Ministerium für Schule und Weiterbildung, Düsseldorf, Germany 
◦ Kultur Elektrisiert, book, RWE Aktiengesellschaft Essen, Katrin Osbelt-KO2B, Klartext-Verlag, Essen, Germany 
◦ VoRWEggehen und den Ruhrtalradweg zur Open-Air Galerie machen, catalogue, RWE Deutschland AG, Essen, Germany
2009
◦ inSPIRACJE/space, exhibition catalogue, inSPIRACJE, Szeczin, Poland
2008
◦ Camera Austria International N° 103/104, Graz, Austria2006◦ Nah und Fern N° 32/Bilder in unseren Köpfen, cultural magazine for Migration and Participation, Prof. Dr. Birgit Rommelspacher, von Loeper Literaturverlag, Karlsruhe, Germany
2005
◦ 7. Internationale Fototage Mannheim/Ludwigshafen, exhibition catalogue, Mannheim, Germany
2002
◦ Reality-check, 2. Hamburger Triennale der Photografie, catalogue

TEACHING
2017
◦ Spring/Summer 2017 Teaching artist - Introduction to Studio Lighting, RAYKO, San Francisco, CA
◦ Spring/Summer 2017 Teaching Artist - Public Education Faculty, San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco, CA
2016
◦ Spring/Summer 2016 Teaching Artist - Public Education Faculty, San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco, CA
2013
◦ Teaching Assistant to Paul Klein – Friending Art with Benefits, San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco CA
2012
◦ Teaching Assistant to Jack Fulton – Introduction to Digital Photography, San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco CA2001-03◦ Teaching Assistant to Jörg Winde, – div. photography classes University of Applied Sciences and Art, Dortmund, Germany