Matthieu Rytz, founder of the AnthropoGraphia Award for Human Rights, opened the exhibition Awarded Commitment on Friday, 13 April. The show brings together diverse, for the most part moving reportage photography by fifteen prizewinners and finalists from three socially engaged photography prizes in one all-embracing exhibition. Awarded Commitment is a many-faceted show in which the visitor can employ several senses: sight, hearing and touch.

The work of the 2011 AnthropoGraphia Award winner Christian Vium and the two nominees who received honourable mentions hangs on one wall. Interspersed among the photos are three video installations from the multimedia category of this prize.

On another wall hangs the penetrating work of Javier Arcenillas, winner of the FotoEvidence Book Award 2011, about contract killers in Guatamala City. The other finalists of the Book Award are presenting at Noorderlicht in custom made book form: please use the gloves provided by the gallery when handling and leafing through the books.

The whole is rounded off with a selection from the work of the photographers Chris Jordan, Ed Kashi and Munem Wasif. Their work is a result of special commissions by the Prix Pictet.

Images: Saiful Huq and Majid Saeedi

Noorderlicht Fotogalerie
Akerkhof 12 Groningen, NL
Wednesday - Sunday
Noon - 6 p.m.
Admission FREE

25 May - 8 July

In the Noorderlicht/Paradox exhibition OFFSIDE, photographer Dirk-Jan Visser tells the story of the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh from the perspective of two football teams: FK Qarabag Agdam and FK Karabakh Stepanakert.

The human tragedy of this conflict is revealed through the eyes of six people, each one connected to the respective football teams - exemplary for the daily lives of players and coaches, fighters and refugees, sons and daughters, wives and widows. 

© Dirk-Jan Visser

On Tuesday April 24, bookstore Godert Walter will organise a lecture in the Noorderlicht Photogallery by journalist Tracy Metz. She will present her book Sweet & Salt: Water and the Dutch.

Sweet & Salt: Water and the Dutch is about the 'extreme makeover' of the Dutch landscape in order to accommodate a new relationship to water. 

Apply now for the third edition of this unique one year master class for professional photojournalists and social documentary photographers. It aims at developing your skills as photographers and marketers. Registrations are limited, and will be due to a selection procedure by the organisers. Deadline: June 15.

Experiences previous participants

Laura Zwaneveld: “For me the reason for participating in the masterclass was to take my independent projects to a higher level. To learn how to work in series and to tell stories.But it gave me much more than that. [...] The masterclass has given me more confidence and also the trust to step forward with my work at portfolioreviews and potential clients.” And with succes, she has now published her work in Dutch Newspapers NRC and AD.

Inge Hondebrink: "After the masterclass you will be better able to assemble a good portfolio, and have more skills to present your work and promote it internationally." Inge will exhibit portraits and photos of Lodz this May during Lodz FotoFestiwal in Poland.

Images: Laura Zwaneveld and Inge Hondebrink

Noorderlicht received the astounding amount of 28,578 images from 2,228 series by 1,623 photographers!
The first round of selections has been made. 1,100 photographers are still in the running.  

The main topic of the Noorderlicht International Photofestival 2012 will be landscape as the illusion of nature. More information in a next newsletter.