Karin Székessy was born in Essen in 1938. From 1957 to 1959, she studied photography in Munich. In 1959, she began taking photographs of dolls; from 1963 onwards, she added nude photography and corresponded professionally with Paul Wunderlich. In the period 1960 to 1966, Székessy worked as a photojournalist for the magazine Kristall, and between 1962 and 1967 was a member of the Zeitgenossen workgroup. From 1967 to 1969, she occupied a post teaching fashion photography at the school of applied arts in Hamburg. Karin Székessy was married to Paul Wunderlich from 1971 until his death in 2010. Between 1984 and 1987, she created about 300 cover photos for Ullstein crime novels. As of today she has exhibited her work internationally in Amsterdam, London, New York and Tokyo and is the author of numerous publications. In German-speaking countries, her work has recently been shown in comprehensive retrospectives at the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg, the Photobastei in Zürich, the Deutsches Fotomuseum, Leipzig and the exhibition at the Johanna Breede Photokunst gallery in Berlin.