Violence against women and children, access to education, consequences of climate change are among the subjects treated in the international exhibition entitled World Press Photo that was launched at the National Museum of History of Moldova on November 9. “This year, most of the winning stories are told by photographers who are closer to them. 19 of the 24 awarded projects belong to photographers who are native of countries or communities where their stories were photographed,” said Marika Cukrowski, coordinator and manager of the international exhibition World Press Photo.
In the 2022 exhibition, visitors can discover such subjects as the natives’ resistance, the already real effects of climate change and the global fight for civil rights. “These stories offer new perspectives on problems that are often ignored and inspire us visually. Nothing exemplifies this tendency better than the Photo of the Year 2022. The work made by Canadian photographer Amber Bracken is a memorial to the victims of the Kamloops residential school of Canada. The presented image invites us to commemorate the children who died and brings this sad part of Canada’s history on the global stage, calling on us not to forget the past and to seek justice,” said Marika Cukrowski.
According to Eugen Sava, director of the National Museum of History of Moldova, the exhibition deserves special public attention and can be visited until November 30. “The exhibition World Press Photo annually travels all over the world and we can present it not only to journalists but also to the general public that once again will justly assess this exhibition of authentic masterpieces. These are photographic works made so well and with such a talent that they can be indeed exhibited as contemporary works of art. This year the exhibition was mounted in an absolutely new, recently renovated hall,” stated the Museum’s director.
Floris van Eijk, Head of the Dutch Embassy Office in Chisinau, said this exhibition promotes the important role played by journalists in society and by the independent press. “We hope that the journalists in the Republic of Moldova will continue transmitting authentic information and offering an independent view on what is going on in the world so that the inhabitants of the Republic of Moldova can form an own opinion about the situation. These principles of the independent mass media refer not only to journalists from the print media but also to photographers. Sometimes, a photograph says more than 1,000 words. I hope you will find here photos that will arouse you interest, will make you ponder over and will help you form a viewpoint about the current situation in the world. We support the independent press in Moldova, the journalists and photographers and will encourage them further. We understand that it is not so easy to work in a small media market like the one in Moldova, where there are politicians who do not want to realize the important role of the press,” stated the official.
Nadine Gogu, executive director of the Independent Journalism Center, said the interest in photojournalism increases. It is much greater not only among professionals but also among the public. The exhibits are works with a major impact on the people. “They can make us stop and wonder, eventually think about the possible solutions to problems shown by these photos and, in some of the cases, can even make us act. Even if some of the images reflect the reality in other corners of the world, the treated subjects are relevant to the Republic of Moldova too. I want to urge our photojournalists to be more daring, perseverant and to take part in this competition. Applications can be submitted as from December 1 this year,” stated Nadine Gogu.
Out of 64,823 entries by 4,066 photographers from 130 countries at the 2022 contest, an independent jury selected four global winners and 24 regional winners from 23 countries, such as Argentina, Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, Germania, Greece, and India.
