Michele Zousmer is a visionary fine art photographer who uses her camera as a powerful instrument to amplify the voices of individuals and communities often marginalized by society.
In her latest work, Michele Zousmer delves into the feminization of aging, capturing the harsh realities faced by many elderly women abandoned in Romania and Bulgaria. These women often live in isolated rural communities, housed in crumbling remnants of former collective farms.
Far removed from family and support networks, they struggle to survive on meager pensions that barely cover their daily food needs. The conditions are dire, and Zousmer recounts how deeply unsettling it was to witness these women preparing for the harsh winter entirely on their own.
More info: michelezousmer.com | Instagram
"It saddens me that these people are spending their last years enduring such poverty, living alone and isolated! Few of us are prepared for the complexities of managing the last years of our lives," Zousmer shared about this photography project on her website.
"As we live longer, we all will be facing challenges. But these challenges were extreme for the abandoned elderly in Romania and Bulgaria," she added.
