Readers of The Day can see the works of Ukrainian photographers at the annual photo exhibit organized by the editors office. Talented photographers from different parts of Ukraine take part in those exhibits. Their works are then sent off to tour various Ukrainian cities. Now we have a chance to see the works of the world’s best photographers. There will be World Press Photo exhibition at the municipal art gallery Lavra from February 25 through March 21. The best photo shots from 2008 will be presented there. The exhibition will be held by the Ukraine’s Art Galleries Association together with Modern Art Center Soviart, and funded by the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Ukraine and Ukraine’s Foreign Affairs Ministry. The Day was invited as a media partner of the exhibition.
“World Press Photo Exhibition has been held annually with success in many countries of the world. It is usually sponsored by the biggest corporations, banks, funds, and international organizations that facilitate the development of international media cooperation and photography,” read the letter from the Ukraine’s Association of Art Galleries director Viktor Khamatov to the editorial office of The Day. “The goal of the exhibition is to facilitate the development of photography in Ukraine. It’s the main goal of the exhibition program.”
March 13 will be The Day of the The Photographer magazine — the international publication on photography issues. On March 18 there will be a round table held for media representatives, publishing houses, informational agencies, and professional photographers, who participated in the World Press Photo Contest. There also be a presentation of the International Festival of Photography KievFotoCom, which will be held in Kyiv in October and November 2010. During the exhibition there will be a lottery for visitors with presents from the organizers, exhibition partners, publishing houses, and producers of photo- and digital equipment.
In the art gallery Lavra there will be 119 photographs presented in ten categories: News, Contemporary Issues, General News, Daily Life, People in the News, Portraits, Sport, Arts and Entertainment, Nature, and Sports Features. Ukraine’s Association of Art Galleries promised that Ukrainians will be able to see the works of 62 Contest laureates from 20 countries who work with the world’s largest publications.
The World Press Photo Contest has been held for 52 years already and its exhibitions have been viewed the most significant events in world photography. Ukrainians have already won the Contest prize twice in its history. In 2008 Glib Garanich won the third prize in the Spot News category for a photo made in Georgia during the Georgia-Russia conflict. By the way, now Garanich is working as a news photographer for Reuters. Before that he worked in the Ukrainian National Information Agency Ukrinform.
In 2009 Ukrainian news photographer Stepan Rudyk won the third prize in the category Sports Features, Stories. At present the photographer works for RIA Novosti and is a member of the Kyiv club of photo artists Ikar. Over 5,000 photographers from 124 countries of the world took part in the World Press Photo Contest. A piece by the Italian photographer Pietro Masturzo won the main prize of the Contest. The best press photos have been already presented in over 120 countries around the world.
