Overview
2013 was a turbulent one. There was the Boston Marathon bombing, super-typhoon Haiyan, the US government shutdown. 60 people were killed in the four-day Westgate mall siege in Nairobi. Edward Snowden leaked top-secret documents that showed mass surveillance by the US government. Nelson Mandela died. At all of these events, photographers were there to show us what happened.
Each year the World Press Photo Exhibition features the very best of this photography. From 10,000 entries, a small few are chosen. Some of it is of the big stuff — all those stories that caught our attention and made the headlines — but much of it is more personal, capturing the small moments in people’s lives the world over. The result is a deeply human picture of our world in all its separate intimate components.
The top prize for this year’s awards was won by American photographer John Stanmeyer for his shot of African migrants on the shore of Djibouti city at night, raising their phones to try to get signal from neighbouring Somalia. Some of the photos featured also have a New Zealand connection. There is a series by Wellington-born, human rights photographer Robin Hammond on the treatment of mental health sufferers in South Sudan, as well as a collection on the America’s Cup in San Francisco by Ezra Shaw (although maybe you don’t want to be reminded of Team NZ’s spectacular loss).
The Exhibition has now made its way to Auckland. From July 5 to 27, you can find it on the top floor of Smith & Caughey’s on Queen Street. Entry is $10 but students can get in for $5. Take care if you’re bringing kids, though—some of the content may disturb.