Prix Pictet Human opens at Arter

ISTANBUL

Prix Pictet Human at Arter showcases the work of 12 photographers shortlisted for the 10th cycle of the Prix Pictet, the world's leading prize for photography and sustainability.

Following the first exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, the 10th edition of Prix Pictet, the world's leading prize for photography and sustainability, has opened at Istanbul’s Arter.

Prix Pictet was founded in 2008 by the Pictet Group with the goal of harnessing the power of photography to draw attention to the critical issue of global sustainability. To date, there have been 10 cycles of the award, each with its own theme highlighting a particular facet of sustainability.

At a ceremony held at the Victoria & Albert Museum in September 2023 (on the first leg of the international tour), Indian photographer Gauri Gill won the Prix Pictet Human award and received a prize worth 100,000 Swiss Francs. Gill was selected by an independent jury from 12 finalists.

Gill’s work emphasizes her belief in working with and through community, in what she calls “active listening.” For more than two decades, she has been engaged closely with marginalized communities in the desert of western Rajasthan, and for the last decade with Indigenous artists in Maharashtra.

At the close of the exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum, Colombian photographer Federico Ríos Escobar was announced as the winner of the inaugural Prix Pictet People's Choice Award, receiving the prize of 10,000 francs. Ríos Escobar's poignant work captures the heart-wrenching realities of South American children whose parents have embarked on the perilous migrant journey through the treacherous Darién Gap, a near-impassable stretch of jungle on the Colombia-Panama border.

The People's Choice Award was introduced to allow the public to vote for their favorite shortlisted series and to create further dialog around the vital issues the Prix Pictet explores.

Prix Pictet Human at Arter showcases the work of 12 outstanding photographers shortlisted for the 10th cycle of the award. Their work constitutes a powerful exploration of the various facets of the theme, “Human.”

In their own unique way, each of the shortlisted photographers explores our shared humanity and the vast spectrum of our interactions with the world. The shortlisted portfolios span documentary, portraiture, landscape and studies of light and process. The issues explored range from the plight of indigenous peoples, conflict, childhood, the collapse of economic processes, to the traces of human habitation and industrial development, gang violence, border lands and migration.

Their work evaluates our role as stewards of the planet and sheds light on the critical issues of global sustainability, the central concern of the Prix Pictet since its inception 15 years ago.

Besides Gill, the shortlisted photographers include Hoda Afshar (Iran), Gera Artemova (Ukraine), Ragnar Axelsson (Iceland), Alessandro Cinque (Italy/Peru), Siân Davey (UK), Michal Luczak (Poland), Yael Martínez (Mexico), Richard Renaldi (U.S.), Federico Ríos Escobar (Colombia), Vanessa Winship (UK/Bulgaria) and Vasantha Yogananthan (France).