For its 6th edition, the
Prix Virginia was presented to the British-Egyptian photographer
Laura El-Tantawy during an online ceremony held on Tuesday November 8th 2022.
She'll succeed to
Cristina de Middel (Prix Virginia 2020),
Cig Harvey (Prix Virginia 2018),
Siân Davey (Prix Virginia 2016),
Dina Goldstein (Prix Virginia 2014) and
Liz Hingley (Prix Virginia 2012).
Her series
I'll
Die For You was
distinguished and
recognized by
the jury members
among more than
1,100 applications
sent from nearly
90 different
countries.
The Jury of Prix Virginia 2022 unanimously
awarded the 6th Prix Virginia to Laura El-Tantawy
during an online deliberation on September 9th
2022.
For its sixth edition, the Prix Virginia
confirms its renown among women photographers
around the world and the necessity of a special
award for them. As a reminder, they were around
400 candidates from nearly 40 countries applying
in 2018 for the 4th edition of the Prix Virginia.
Opened on January 10th 2022 and ended on
May 7th, the call for applications of this sixth
edition was a great and international success:
photographers from China, Poland, Cuba,France,
Mexico, Ukraine, India, Armenia, Turkey or Pakistan proved
again their motivation and their creative urge by applying to
this award dedicated to them.
To decide between candidates,
Sylvia Schildge, the president and founder of the Prix Virginia, surrounded herself
with an international jur y of photography professionals selected by Lucy Conticello,
Director of Photography of the weekly M, le Magazine du Monde:
-
Azu Nwagbogu,
Founder and Director
of the African Artists'
Foundation (AAF) and of
the LagosPhoto Festival
(Nigeria)
-
Yumi Goto,
Independant Photography
Curator and Editor,
member of the World Press
Photo jur y in 2017 ( Japan)
-
Marie Robert,
Head curator for
photography and cinema
at the Musée d'Orsay
(France)
-
Shoair Mavlian,
Director of the
Photographers Gallery
(United-Kingdom)
-
Sylvia Schildge,
President and founder of
the Prix Virginia
(France)
-
Antonio Carloni,
Deputy Director of the
Gallerie d'Italia - Turin
(Italia)
-
Krzysztof
Candrowicz,
Founder and Director
of the Fotofestiwal, the
Foundation of Visual
Education and the Lodz
Art Center (Poland)
The jury was unanimously stricken
by Laura El-Tantawy's series I'll Die
For You in which the photographer
speaks out for the tragic destinies
of Indian farmers in a sensitive and
subtle way.
Laura El-Tantawy
Born in 1980,
Laura El-Tantawy is a British/Egyptian
photographer. Her studies in Egypt,
Saudi Arabia, United-States and in
England and her photographic carrier
that drove her to Asia, Middle East
and Europe or to South America have
nourished a multicultural work with a
certain tension.
Laura El-Tantawy's photographic se-
ries document and investigate social and
environmental issues which she explores
through notions of home and belonging.
For every subject, the photographer looks
at the world with a lyric yet committed
eye. Laura El-Tantawy calls to mind,
questions and unveils to produce aware-
ness and encourage a positive change to
the world.
I'll Die For You tells the story of her
encounters with more than 70 Indian
families who experienced the tragedy
of farmers suicides. In 21 years, nearly
300,000 farmers have committed suicide
in India, pushed by debts. Moved by
these tragic destinies, Laura El-Tantawy
shows the collective vulnerability to
those who give their life to land and
permits to an environmental and social
reality to be personified when others
would like it to be kept as an anonymous
abstraction.
First Egyptian and Arab to receive the
W. Eugene Smith Memorial Fund award,
Laura El-Tantawy is an international
renowned photographer. Her photos
have been published by The New Yorker,
Afar, Le Monde, The Wall Street Journal,
National Geographic, Time or The New
York Times. Her work has been presented
at the FotoFest in Houston, Texas, at the
Institut des Cultures d'Islam in Paris,
France, at Dubai's Gulf Photo Plus or at
Photo2020 in Melbourne, Australia.
''I am
absolutely
delighted to be
the recipient
of the Prix
Virginia
Award in its
sixth round.
I am proud to have my
name added to the list of
women of my generation
and beyond who have
preceded me as recipients
— visionaries who have
undoubtedly etched their
creative signature within
our craft for many years
to come. Whether one
identifies as a storyteller,
an artist, a photographer
or photojournalist, this
award celebrates us all
while ensuring the voices
of women are loud and
clear: We exist, we excel
and we will always propel
forward because that is
what we do. I especially
extend my gratitude
to Sylvia Schildge for
establishing this award
in honor of her wonderful
mother and to celebrate
and emphasize the
contributions of women
photographers to our
practice.''
Laura El-Tantawy
www.lauraeltantawy.com
@laura_el_tantawy
All about Laura El-Tantawy
Alongside Laura El-Tantawy, the
jury took note of 10 other candidates
whose photographs will be regularly presented on the Prix Virginia
website, approximately showcasing one photographer every two
months, from January 2023 until the awarding of the next Prix
Virginia in 2024:
Irina Shkoda
(Ukraine)
Jyoti Shrestha
(Nepal)
Laura Chen
(Netherlands)
Tori Ferenc
(Poland)
Lee-Ann Olwage
(South Africa)
Kirsty Mackay
(United-Kingdom)
Priya Kambli
(United-States)
Yu Hirai
(Japan)
Ke Sun
(China)
Ela Polkowska
(Poland)
A special mention was also presented to
Penny Wolin
(United-States)
Awarded every two years since 2012, the Prix Virginia is the first photography award
exclusively reserved to a woman photographer, regardless of her age or nationality. The
work submitted must never have yet been exhibited in France and must not be the result
of an editorial assignment or advertisement commission. Founded by Sylvia Schildge,
the Prix Virginia is endowed with 10,000€.
