Now in its second edition, the Syngenta Photography Award is an international competition which aims to stimulate dialogue and raise awareness about significant global challenges through photography. This exhibition will highlight some of the most thought-provoking and powerful responses to the ‘Scarcity- Waste’ theme – one of humankind’s greatest challenges. Ensuring enough land, food and water for future generations has become a fundamental social, political and environmental issue of our time. The photographers not only illustrate the ‘Scarcity-Waste’ theme, in striking and ambitious ways, but have also taken on the role of courageous advocates, showing deep concern for our environment.
Curated by Candlestar, the exhibition is divided into themed rooms. The first two rooms illustrate the pressures on the world today due to factors such as population growth and the increased demand on resources. Latvian photographer Alnis Stakle’s Shangri-La is of a dimly lit building site for a skyscraper in Shanghai, representative of the growth of China’s population. In another room addressing issues such as poverty and mass consumption, Garbage City: Cairo, Egypt by Italian photographer Francesca Remorini, captures a group of children belonging to the ‘Garbage people’ community in an overcrowded slum settlement on the outskirts of the Moqattam Hills. The slum’s inhabitants recycle a staggering 80 percent of the garbage collected from Cairo’s residents – an activity that is central to the local’s economy.
Over 2,000 professional and amateur photographers from all over the world submitted applications in response to the subject of Scarcity-Waste – one of the greatest challenges we face today in a world of increasingly limited resources. US Documentary Photographer Mustafah Abdulaziz wins Professional Commission for his acclaimed Water series.German Photographer Benedikt Partenheimer wins Open Competition for his image, Shijiazhuang, AQI 360, 2014.
“先正達攝影獎”是一項全球性的攝影獎項,旨在通過視覺語言就當前的全球危機引發系列討論從而提高公眾意識。第二屆“先正達攝影獎”以人類最大的挑戰“稀缺與浪費”為主題,因為足夠的土地、食物和水源等自然資源是後代繁衍的基本保障,所以主委會希望通過借助攝影來探討這個最發人深省的話題。當然僅有視覺震懾力是遠遠不夠的,攝影師們更應充當起勇敢者的角色呼籲人們關注環境問題。
展覽由藝術顧問公司Candlestar策劃,入圍作品按主題分類。前半部分展示了由於各種因素導致的全球危機,如人口激增和對資源需求的加劇。拉脫維亞攝影師艾尼斯·斯達寇(Alnis Stakle)的作品《香格里拉(Shangri-La)》取景是上海某處摩天大樓的昏暗建築工地,隱喻中國人口的迅速膨脹。後半部分展示了諸如貧困和大眾消費等問題,意大利攝影師弗朗西斯·瑞莫里尼(Francesca Remorini)的作品《垃圾城:埃及首府開羅(Garbage City: Cairo, Egypt)》捕捉了一群來自“拾荒者部落”的孩子們,該貧民窟坐落在默卡塔姆山(Moqattam Hills)邊郊。那裡的貧民幾乎回收了80%的城市垃圾,這已經成為當地經濟鏈中不可或缺的一環。
當我們意識到資源日益匱乏,來自全球2000多位專業和非專業攝影師用視覺語言積極響應。在本屆獲獎名單中,美國紀實攝影師穆斯塔法·阿齊茲(Mustafah Abdulaziz)的《靈魂之水(Water)》攝影系列榮獲專業組一等獎;德國攝影師貝內迪克·帕頓錫莫(Benedikt Partenheimer )則憑《石家莊空氣質量指數360(Shijiazhuang, AQI 360,2014)》獲得公開賽的冠軍。
Tips 小貼士
展覽場地:Somerset House, London倫敦薩默塞特府
展覽時間:11.03.2015 – 10.04.2015
更多信息:www.syngentaphoto.com