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Stella Meyer (*born 1997 in Salzburg, Austria) is a photojournalist and documentary photographer based in Vienna. Since October 2020, she has been studying visual
journalism and documentary photography at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Hanover. Her work focuses on socio-political issues and nature. She has worked in crisis areas such as the Mediterranean region, Hong Kong, and Romania. Her work has been published in outlets including taz. die tageszeitung, FOTOHOF>CALLING Magazin and has been nominated for the True Picture Award and the Leica Oskar Barnack Newcomer Award. She was presenting her work at World Press Photo Exhibition in Oldenburg (DE) and PhMuseum Lab in Bologna (IT).
In what ways does nature inspire or inform your work?
Nature is not only inspiration, but also a mirror of human behaviour. It’s something we fight about, become territorial over, and fiercely protect yet, paradoxically, we exploit it at the same time. In this tension, nature reveals our true nature as humans. I try to include these contradictions: how landscapes hold memory, how water and ice conserve traces of history, and how our relationship to the natural world exposes social, cultural, and political realities.
What does it mean to you to be part of a thriving ecosystem?
To me it means living in symbiosis—with people, with nature, with the unseen connections that hold everything together, reminding us that we only endure through the relationships we build, and that nothing truly exists on its own.
