The Photographers’ Gallery awarded Richard Mosse with the Deutsche Börse Photography Prize 2014 in London tonight at a special ceremony in the Gallery. The announcement was made by artist Richard Wentworth CBE. The annual award comes with a prize money of 30,000 GBP and recognizes a photographer who has made an important contribution to contemporary photography in Europe in the previous twelve months. Richard Mosse won for his exhibition “The Enclave at Venice Biennale”, Irish Pavilion. In “The Enclave”, he documents a haunting landscape touched by appalling human tragedy in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where 5.4 million people have died of war-related causes since 1998.
The artist was chosen by jury members Kate Bush, curator; Jitka Hanzlová, artist; Thomas Seelig, director/curator, Fotomuseum Winterthur; and Anne-Marie Beckmann, curator, Art Collection Deutsche Börse, Germany.
The other shortlisted artists for the Deutsche Börse Photography Prize 2014, each awarded 3,000 GBP, are: Alberto García-Alix for his publication Autorretrato/Selfportrait, La Fabrica Editorial; Jochen Lempert for his exhibition Jochen Lempert at Hamburger Kunsthalle; and Lorna Simpson for her exhibition Lorna Simpson (Retrospective) at Jeu de Paume, Paris.
The Deutsche Börse Photography Prize 2014 is organised by The Photographers’ Gallery and is on display there until 22 June followed by presentations at the Deutsche Börse headquarters in Frankfurt/Eschborn, from 17 July until mid September.
Brett Rogers, non-voting chair of the Jury and Director of The Photographers’ Gallery said, on behalf of the jury: “The jury awarded Richard Mosse the Deutsche Börse Photography Prize 2014 for his extraordinarily immersive film and photo installation The Enclave, which innovatively addresses the representation of war. They praised the manner in which Mosse combined form and content to draw attention to a conflict, which despite costing the lives of millions of people has largely gone unnoticed by the West.”
Frank Klaas, Managing Director Global Public Affairs, Deutsche Börse said: “I welcome the jury’s decision and would like to congratulate the winner. We are very impressed by the scope and creativity of contemporary photographic art and feel honoured to be part of this award; especially, as this year marks our 10th anniversary as sponsor of Europe’s most renowned photography prize. ”
About Deutsche Börse Group:
Deutsche Börse Group is one of the world’s leading exchange organisations and – as part of its Corporate Responsibility approach – one of the most important promoters of photographic art. The Group has been collecting contemporary photography since 1999. The Art Collection Deutsche Börse comprises more than 1,000 works by approximately 90 international artists. The works are exhibited at the company’s main locations in Eschborn/Frankfurt, London, Luxembourg, Prague and Zurich. The company also supports exhibition projects of international museums and institutions.
The Photographers’ Gallery
The Photographers’ Gallery opened in 1971 in Great Newport Street, London, as the UK’s first independent gallery devoted to photography. It was the first public gallery in the UK to exhibit many key names in international photography, including Juergen Teller, Robert Capa, Sebastião Salgado and Andreas Gursky. The Gallery has also been instrumental in establishing contemporary British photographers, including Martin Parr and Corinne Day. In 2009, the Gallery moved to 16 – 18 Ramillies Street in Soho, the first stage in its plan to create a 21st century home for photography. Following an eighteen month long redevelopment project, the Gallery reopened to the public in 2012. The success of The Photographers’ Gallery over the past four decades has helped to establish photography as a recognised art form, introducing new audiences to photography and championing its place at the heart of visual culture.
The Photography Prize History
Founded in 1996 by The Photographers’ Gallery, and now in its seventeenth year, the Prize has become one of the most prestigious international arts awards and has launched and established the careers of many photographers over the years. Previously known as the Citigroup Photography Prize, the Gallery has been collaborating with Deutsche Börse Group as title sponsors since 2005. Winners of the Deutsche Börse Photography Prize 2013 were Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin for their publication War Primer (2012, MACK). Other past winners include Paul Graham, Juergen Teller, Rineke Dijkstra, Richard Billingham and John Stezaker.