Ricarda Schwerin (1912-1999) was a photographer and an active communist. She was born Ricarda Meltzer on January 30, 1912 in Gottingen, Germany. Schwerin started her studies in photography at age 18 at the Bauhaus in Dessau during the summer of 1930, where she studied under Walter Peterhans. She was subsequently banned from continuing her studies in the spring of 1932 along with her fellow openly communist students and husband, Heinz Schwerin.

Ricarda and Heinz moved to Frankfurt am Main to continue their studies at the College of Fine Art and Applied Art, but soon after fled to Prague because Schwerin was arrested for the illegal distribution of Communist propaganda. For a time the couple ran an advertising agency in Prague called ‘Hammer und Pinsel.’ They then emigrated to Switzerland, and then to Pécs, Hungary, where they married in 1935. In August of that year they emigrated once again, as refugees, to Palestine where they created 'Schwerin Wooden Toys' workshop in 1936. The couple had two children, a daughter Jutta and son Tom, born in Jerusalem in 1941 and 1948 respectively.

Following her husband death in 1948, Ricarda Schwerin opened a privately run home for refugee children while also returning to her passion for photography. For nearly 20 years she collaborated with Alfred Bernheim, eventually becoming involved with him romantically. The two published a photo book titled Jerusalem – Rock of Ages in 1969, and Schwerin independently had a successful photographic career. Her works included photos in the children’s books Sippurim Le Nivi [Stories for Nivi] and Nono, as well as a photographic collection on contemporary Israeli architecture in the cultural magazine Ariel.

Ricarda Schwerin came to know Hannah Arendt during Arendt’s visit to Jerusalem in 1961. The women became well acquainted, and Schwerin made some portrait photographs for Arendt. In 1963 the two women took a trip to Greece, accompanied by Heinrich Blücher and Charlotte Beradt. During this trip Schwerin created a series of photographs that she later sent to Arendt and Blücher.