JURORS:

Greg Hobson, Curator of Photographs, National Media Museum

Paul Moakley, Deputy Photo Editor, TIME Magazine

Christopher Steighner, Senior Editor, Rizzoli Publications

Juror Statement

First Place:

Anastasia Taylor - Lind

Jurors' Choice:

Honorable Mention:

PROJECT COMPETITION : Jurors' Statement

JURORS GREG HOBSON, Curator of Photographs, National Media Museum; PAUL MOAKLEY, Deputy Photo Editor, TIME Magazine; CHRISTOPHER STEIGHNER, Senior Editor, Rizzoli Publications

In the initial phase of our process we were faced with more than 700 diverse and interesting projects from all around the world - a daunting but ultimately very inspiring task. As a whole, the competition revealed a fascinating picture of what are the main concerns of our photographers today, what are the subjects valued for examination.

As we moved along, certain recurring themes emerged. Among them were some of today's most pressing: the aftermath of war and natural disasters in places such as Libya and Fukushima, humans' effect on the landscape, and migration forced by economic reasons. It was remarkable that though many projects reflected on the economic downturn that has touched so much of the world in recent years, there was still a humane and ultimately hopeful aspect that rose up through many of them. We saw many fresh and exciting bodies of work that revived well-trod themes by placing them in a new conceptual framework. With stunning results, quite a few artists worked within the home environment - some particularly focusing on how a family copes with illness within its midst. There were many entries that looked at areas that have long been in the midst of transition - especially the Caucasus, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East - but taking an innovative approach so that we might understand in a new way. It seems that almost suddenly many fewer people are concerned with the shift from film to digital, although there were a few artists who made use of historical techniques in order to reposition a subject. There was a noticeable lack of work done in the studio and seemed to be a move towards the outdoors or environmental settings. The majority of entries appeared to be documentary in some way, and those that rose to the top were naturally the ones that told stories in fresh, new ways. A number of projects used experimental processes but in most cases meaningful subject matter trumped pure aesthetic exercises in the end.

The works that reached the final rounds of the contest were distinguished by vision of integrity and consistency. The acknowledged projects as a group reflected the overall diversity that ran throughout all the entries. This group represents a veritable crossroads: Denmark, Mexico, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. But despite where the work was made or the nationality of the photographer, what made for a winning project was that it explored universal themes. They had an international scope in some way and hit on issues that affect us all.

On the whole, we learned so much from this experience - a crash course in what's occupying people's minds today as well as in current developments of photographic practice.

WINNER'S GALLERIES:

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

 

Honorable Mention: Peter Van Agtmael

Artist Statement: Disco Night Sept 11

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Disco Night Sept 11

Ever since I was a kid I've longed for war. I played endlessly with toy soldiers and model airplanes, re-creating scenes from the bloodless and dispassionate trumpet blaring war movies from the 60's and 70's. I wanted to be a soldier covered in medals and proud in valor. When I got older I found Life Magazine chronicles of World War II with pictures of the dead burnt or bloody or frozen; by themselves and in vast numbers. I was shaken raw by reality, the one only hinted at.

In college I searched for identity. I wanted to be a part of something bigger than my selfish primal instincts. I started taking photographs and re-discovered images of war. By then the photographs resonated with temptation and promise. I thought that maybe I could change people's understanding of war; the way my own had shifted so permanently. I credited the pictures, which was a partial truth. A year later the Twin Towers fell. Iraq was invaded just before graduation. Reality was intersecting with my aspired ideals and I knew I had to cover the wars of my country and my generation. I first went to Iraq in the beginning of 2006 and began working in Afghanistan in 2007. I have been covering both wars since. When I returned home I showed the pictures to my friends and family. They were intrigued and troubled and sometimes moved but generally detached. I knew I could not emote my experiences how I wanted, so I began to look for intersections between home and war.

I told myself I'd remained healthy and stable despite the death and violence that I'd seen. I didn't really question that I was no longer sleeping through the night and staying up late watching YouTube videos of firefights. When I went back to war I felt at home. When I stepped outside the wire on my first patrol I after a year away from Afghanistan felt a surge of contentment. At that moment it was the only place in the world I wanted to be. One of my best friends got married that day in the Brooklyn Botanical Garden. My mom's birthday was a few days later and I was trapped in a cornfield as bullets cracked overhead. When I came home I did everything to excess, enjoying it but with a hardness.

The path I was on meant death. If not of my body, then of a part of myself more essential than the identity I had desired and created.

This is a record of a few of those years. I felt one thing more than anything else. Despite all the pain and confusion and isolation and impotence, I knew that what I recorded would only be a slender document. Nearly all the rest was constantly happening in anonymity across Iraq and Afghanistan and the U.S. in endless repetition of all that came before.