National Media Museum Photography Bursary scheme winners announced

A-Z Gymnastics, © Jo Longhurst, image courtesy of the artist

The National Media Museum has announced the five successful applicants to its 2009 Photography Bursary, who each receive a share of the £20,000 award fund. This year it seems that the number of people who applied for the bursary has risen, as there were more than 200 applications, “double the number received the previous year”.

This could be to do with the fact that, increasingly, photographers are having to self fund work. The final selection was judged to reflect the range and diversity of the submitted pieces of work, as well as photographic practice in the UK today. The 2009 awardees are:

Art attack – Saatchi-branded reality TV and photo auction for PhotoVoice charity

As if reality TV hadn’t already invaded every aspect of our lives, now we have an art school elimination contest, School of Saatchi. It wasn’t that long back when there was a photo reality competition Picture This, which was judged, as I remember, by photographer Martin Parr, Brett Rogers (director Photographers’ Gallery), Alex Proud (founder Proud galleries) with mentors Jonathan Olley (winner Observer Hodge Award, Young Photojournalist of the Year in 1995) and Joy Gregory (photographer).

In an article, Reality TV snappers fail to impress judge by David Smith (The Observer, Sunday 6 January 2008), Martin Parr told The Observer: ‘The people they ended up with, I was slightly surprised the quality wasn’t better. They [Picture This contestants] were further down the ability spectrum than you’d expect.’ Wonder if the new series can learn anything from Parr’s comments. It is especially interesting as the winner of that contest Lizz Gordon seems to have disappeared off the radar. The last time I heard of Gordon was at last year’s Brighton Photo Fringe, where the Blue Dog Gallery was selling a couple of her self-portraits. In fact, I will try and contact her and see how she has fared since taking part in the competition.

BMW Paris Photo 09 prize winner, photo competition call for entries and photo news – Fabulous Friday Round Up

© Van Leo, Sherihan actrice égyptienne, Le Caire, Egypte, 1976 Collection Fondation Arabe pour l’Image - Fondation Arabe pour l’Image

It’s all go at the mo. Paris Photo 09 is in full swing at the Carrousel de Louvre, Paris until 22 November, the Sony World Photography Awards are making a call for entries and one of the North of England’s leading visual arts centres is relocating.

With 102 exhibitors made up of 89 galleries and 13 publishers, representing 23 countries, Paris Photo 09 states that: “75 per cent of the participants are non-French and 31 exhibitors are either first-time participants or returning after a previous absence”. During the four-day event, the short listed works for the 2009 BMW – Paris Photo Prize for contemporary photography are also exhibited. The 20 finalists were selected from among 55 projects relating to the theme “When was the last time you experienced something for the first time?”.

The winner of the 12 000 Euros (US $ 15, 000) prize is Dutch photographer Karijn Kakebeeke. The winning work Khadija’s Dream shows “an early moment in 2006 when Khadija first played with a football: an emotionally charged image of an Afghan woman who now belongs to the first female team in her country”. Kakebeeke specialises in documenting social issues and is represented by The Empty Quarter Gallery from Dubai.

© Karijn Kakebeeke, Khadija’s Dream, 2006, Courtesy of The Empty Quarter Gallery, Dubaï

Japanese photographer Tatsumi Orimoto represented by DNA Gallery (Berlin) was awarded a special jury distinction for his moving self-portrait taken with his mother who suffers from Alzheimer’s. This image is part of his extensive Mama Series (2008). The finalists included Eliott Erwitt’s New York City, 1977 and Elinor Carucci’s, Eden and Emmanuelle, the first month, 2004 -. Carruci is interviewed in the next issue of HotShoe, December 2009/January 2010.

Audio interview for Resonance radio with artist Mark Neville on social documentary practice, photography and the Port Glasgow Book Project

'Betty at Port Glasgow Town Hall Xmas Party', © Mark Neville, 2005, taken from The Port Glasgow Book Project

A quick audio file today from an interview I did with artist Mark Neville ahead of the recent talk he gave at the Whitechapel Gallery on 12 November for photomonth.

Framing the Pixel – November 5th 2009

This is a 30-minute live phone interview with Mark. It was originally recorded for Framing The Pixel (FTP) on 4:00-4:30pm on Resonance radio 101.4FM. Roll over the link above.

Ancient Order of the Hibernian Social Club ( Donna), © Mark Neville, 2005

Some of the work from Neville’s Port Glasgow Book Project can be seen in ParrWorld – inside Martin Parr’s photo collection at Baltic Mill till 17 January 2010. The show features two large prints from The Port Glasgow Book Project, along with a copy of the book itself. It also features photographs and books by Paul Graham, Chris Killip, Richard Billingham, Keith Arnatt, Graham Smith, Tom Wood, Karen Knorr, Paul Seawright, Jem Southam and Ian Macdonald, and recent works from Martin Parr.

Photo news and international photo competition results – Fabulous Friday Round Up

Fabulous Friday’s Round Up is back after a busy month. Today’s post is a pic ‘n’ mix selection of some international photography and art competition news, the winners of The Young Masters Art Prize 2009 and the US-based Young Photographers Alliance scholarship 2009, both in their first year, plus Lens Culture’s winners. Also, the dates of the New York Photography Festival 2010 and the names of next year’s four guest curators.

Photo credit: © Hector de Gregorio, Absinthes, 2009

YOUNG MASTERS ART PRIZE 2009
The joint winners of The Young Masters Art Prize are Hector de Gregorio and US artist collaborative duo Ghost of a Dream (Adam Eckstrom and Lauren Was). London-based artist Hector de Gregorio, a recent graduate from the Royal College of Art, “transforms his modern subjects in to fantasy characters, referencing the religious narratives of the Old Masters. In work such as Absinthes (2009) de Gregorio repeatedly paints and varnishes over digital photographs, creating a work which evolves around theatre and fantasy, raising questions about power and submission and contemporary sexual confusion”.