Puria Safary is a character who is easily recognised by his signature style – always wearing a basic T-shirt and jeans. Safary, which means “the traveller”, is a first-generation German of Persian decent, set to fulfil his photographic journey in Berlin.
Born in Aachen in 1988, he grew up sur- rounded by Persian culture; traditions such as eating with his whole family around a big table were part of his everyday routine. Now Puria has flown the nest – ready to explore, create and push his own boundaries.

It’s reported that Muhammad Ali once said,
“I am not the champion that you wanted to have, but the champion I wanted to be.”
These are words that Puria lives by. From his early beginnings he has used this as his mantra, integrating it into his art:
“I don’t make the pictures you would like to see, but the ones I would like to create.
I try to distance myself from the commercial side and be myself. Just me.”

Photography wasn’t something Puria was particularly familiar with growing up, and he was unaware of just how much it would influence him in the future.

He can be described as a minimalist; he loves the effortless and relaxed style that Berlin stands for. Observing the city, he says of Berlin that
“it has a different feel”.
Puria’s photos are of people wearing jeans and a white, grey or
black T-shirt, and this allows him to keep the minimal feel he desires.
This is best shown through “Faces”, the ever-expanding project closest to his heart, which he first exhibited in Berlin last summer.
“Faces” shows people that Puria finds interesting. They come from his everyday life:
artists whose work he admires, friends, or the wider circle of people he finds inspiring.

On the question of whether to take pictures in colour or black and white, from the beginning Puria took the decision to shoot mainly in black and white, as he always wanted to capture timeless moments with his chosen subjects.

This, along with lighting, is an art in itself. It’s clear that Puria captures moments in time; as his photographic career progresses, he is managing to develop both himself and his technique:
“My photography is my world,” he says.
“For me, the key thing with black and white pictures is stillness and keeping the atmosphere of the moment unagitated, so that when you look at one of my pictures, you can feel the captured moment.
” Musician Jesper Munk, whom Puria portrayed in “Faces”,
brings it to the point:
“I think that part of Puria’s magic is how he acts as a wonderful catalyst for his subjects. I find that Puria manages to reduce in the right places, creating space for the essence of the photo.”

Puria’s first personal project, “Safary’s Frame”, was something that obliged him to define his style. It was through this that people started recognising his work. This series captures his subjects with a chair, telling their story and allowing them to express their reality.
Following on from this, Puria took things up a notch by further
reducing his vision.
He took away the chair, and “Faces” was born. When asked to list the criteria by which he chooses whom to photograph, he says:
“I follow my instincts on whom I’m going to work with.
Regardless of whether it’s an artist or creative person, or simply someone I find interesting – someone who manages to enlighten and uplift me when our paths cross, or someone I have an interesting conversation with – my models are people in whom I notice an inner spark.”

Both projects are still very much alive, and he wants to keep expanding them throughout his career. He would also like to travel for his work and collect impressions while seeing the world, but Berlin will always be his base, a city he hopes to keep calling his home.
In the meantime, he is enjoying his work and looking forward to the day that “Faces” becomes a book.

Text by Fenia Moskou