ICP Award

I'm proud to announce that the following image “Can he read” won the 1st prize in the 2010 ICP Awards in the category ”Environment at Risk”.

The International Conservation Photography Awards is a prestigious international photography contest, focused on conservation and the environment. The ICP award was founded and is hosted by Art Wolfe.



The story behind: “Can he read?” was my first thought, as I saw this male fur seal sitting on the old propeller, and he was looking at me as if he was asking himself the same question about me.
Stromness Bay, South Georgia, was once a whaling station, where thousands of whales got slaughtered, bringing some of them to the brink of extinction. There is still a very depressing aura engulfing the place. Feeling an overwhelming sadness and burning anger deep within, I wanted to create an image that shows the desolation of the place, but also the hope that lies within. We need to stop whaling completely and conserve, protect and nourish what's left AND we need to make places like Stromness Bay safer for the seals and penguins who fortunately have reclaimed the place. They have suffered already enough!

The winning images and honorable mentions are now displayed in Seattle's Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture.
Not only have I won first place in the environment at risk category, our son Tomi also won an honorable mention in the student category. No question hence, that we would attend the opening reception on June 18th in Seattle.
What a great evening! Many, many people came to celebrate the opening, and the Museum and Art Wolfe were the perfect hosts. We met many of the other photographers, chatted with the museums director, Julie Stein and admired the exceptional display.

Opening Night Gala

The Burke Museum



The feeling to see my photograph displayed in a museum was quite overwhelming, the experience to share this moment together with Tomi was beyond words...

The Exhibition Entrance







Art Wolfe with Tomi, in front of Tomi's photograph (lower left)



A big Thank You to my friend Daisy Gilardini, who took all of the above images.

News coverage of the event:

National Geographic News

W UWEEK


Once in Seattle we also explored a bit of downtown and the fish market....Seattle is a fantastic city, but the weather....


Of course, the first stop was...



...yes, the very first Starbucks!

Impressions from Pike's Market











Any guess what that is......yuck!!!



A very BIG Thank you to Kim and BJ! I couldn't have wished for better hosts!!