“Photography is truth” is a famous quote from the renowned 20th century French New Wave director Jean-Luc Godard. Today, it might seem an optimistic point-of-view, given the rise of digital manipulation and AI tools in an era of “post-truth.” But the art form remains a powerful way make visible the topics, people and communities that have been forgotten, or hidden, by history. This year’s AOP Open Award celebrates the universal power of photography. The Prize brings together still and moving images by professional and amateur photographers alike. The finalists cover a vast range of subjects, highlighting the ways in which the camera can play a role in social, political, cultural and emotional conversations across the world. They include recreations of original photographs of Black American Civil War Combatants with their descendants in the frame, the reshaping of the Alps by climate change, the plight of those left behind by technology in the US, local residents of Palm Springs and community climate action groups. These finalists form a colourful tapestry of modern photography, celebrating its role in contemporary life.

Colour Correction

David Parfitt

Londoner David Parfitt discovered his love of photography, and the power of images, early on.
Over the last four decades, he has been sought out by the likes of Vogue, Dior, Estee Lauder, De Beers Diamonds, Bentley Motors for his keen eye for composition, exquisite attention to detail and masterful command of lighting. Beyond his commercial work, his personal projects reflect a passion for exploring the beauty in simple everyday things, taking a closer look to reveal intricacies and hidden patterns.

Chonti

April Ironside

This portrait is taken from Ironside’s series, Second Skin, which explores how fashion is used as a form of armour in modern society.

Joseph Horton’s interest lies with cultural and environmental identity. His work focuses on our custodial role in the Anthropocene era and reflect how we both affect and are affected by the environments we inhabit. His photographs in the Association of Photographers Open Award creates a juxtaposition between wild and remote spaces and the swathes of visitors that travel to the sites each year. The Chamonix is home to Mont Blanc, France’s tallest mountain and Mer de Glace, its biggest glacier. It is a hugely popular spot with tourists, but throughout the past century it has been steadily eroded by the effects of climate change. In 1988, it took people three steps to reach the ice once they had stepped off the transportation gondola, now it is a 550-step route on a specially built walkway. Chamonix, uniquely, faces the dual role of spectator and host to climate change’s impact on tourism. Horton’s images of crowds gathering in these spots of natural beauty ask one simple question – how will alpine locations adapt in order to manage and negate the escalating effects of international global warming?

More than 180,000 Black soldiers served in the Union Army during the American Civil War, and a further 29,000 enlisted in the Navy. In total, they made up almost 10 percent of all Union forces. As well as the usual perils of conflict, African American soldiers faced segregated regiments, hostile commanding officers and entrenched racial prejudices. Now, Drew Gardner is bringing the experiences of these men to the fore. His powerful series is the result of a four-year long project working with the Black history unit of genealogy organization WikiTree to identify the figures in images of combatants. The artist then traced their descendants, bringing them together from across the US to recreate these portraits. Those involved include families of key historical figures, including the great niece of Harriet Tubman and Austin Morris, who is a relative of Frederick Douglass. The resulting images, taken using a 5×7 inch tintype camera from 1800s, serve as a compelling reminder that these stories and people are not so far removed from our own lives, we just have to look back at our own family tree to see history play out. 

Green spaces are good for our health. They help reduce heart disease, obesity and depression. Yet, according to Friends of the Earth, almost 10 million people in England live in areas with very limited access to green spaces. In an historically marginalised part of Stoke-on-Trent, situated besides a derelict brownfield site and two factories, the residents have embarked on a 100 Year Plan to improve their neighbourhood for the community and the planet. The Portland Inn Project, an artist led collective, has driven the programme since it first began, aiming to achieve community cohesion through involving the locals in the development of a pioneering community space. In becoming part of this group, residents are empowered to think about their history and move to conserve their land and surrounding ecology. Felicity Crawshaw is a photographer of people and places. Her work is defined by a desire to capture the ephemeral nature of the landscape and the people that live as part of it. She creates a narrative around the relationship between an individual and the environment and the bonds that link them to the land.

There is no question that society is dependent on technology. The convenience and practicalities of being able to flick on a light switch, throw your dirty clothes into a washing machine or send someone an email from anywhere in the world, have been increasingly seen as modern necessities. Nothing cemented this more in the popular psyche than the Covid-19 pandemic, in which people forced to work from home required a computer and access to the Internet to be able to do their job. More than ever, online is portrayed as the only option and acts like accessing your bank account or signing documents have become entirely digital. In Eric Kunsman’s photography series, he explores the people who have been left behind by technology. A recurring motif in his work is the shame people report in feeling when they are seen using a payphone, despite often making use of them to speak to family. Kunsan states that “our society has become one in which you must have access to these tools to be provided with support services and a job, or you are left behind, widening the gap between lower and middle classes.”

Markku Lähdesmäki’s one mission is to tell a complete story in a single snapshot. His portraits are vibrantly alive and in then you can see echoes of Annie Leibovitz’s famous quote; “a thing that you see in my pictures is that I was not afraid to fall in love with these people.” Rose City Raindrops is photograph of two synchronised swimmers in Palm Springs, California. It is part of the Swimmers series, which documents women dressed in shimmering gold bathing costumes complete routines, their beaming faces and whimsical abandon leaving no doubt that they love their craft. Elsewhere, an elderly man stands atop a diving board, enjoys the cold water of the showers and observes the pool. It’s a project rooted in Lähdesmäki artistic ethos: “my love of photography inspires a constant stream of personal work that is largely inspired by the values I hold dear: joy of life, peace of mind and a sense of humour.” Ultimately, this is an artist who wants to remind his viewers that the basic things in life are all too often taken for granted, when actually they are the things that bring the most meaning to our existence. 

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The Association of Photographers Open Award winner will be announced 26 September: aopawards.com

Words: Emma Jacob

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Colour Correction #1. © David Parfitt

Chonti. © April Ironside

Joseph Horton, Summit of the Aiguille du Midi. From the series ‘Witnessing Change’ © Joseph Horton. Courtesy The Association of Photographers.