Arts Writer
TWENTY-ONE year-old student at the Stellenbosch Academy of Design & Photography Rochelle de Abreuis, is one of 10 shortlisted photographers for the 2016 Sony World Photography Awards Student Focus programme.
De Abreu’s shortlisted image Contemporary Portrait of Born Free South Africans beat entries from over 400 educational institutions across five continents. She is now one of 10 shortlisted photographers from around the world who will be flown to London to compete to win the Student Focus Photographer of the Year title and a grand prize of Sony photography equipment.
She will also have the opportunity to be featured by the British Journal of Photography (the world’s oldest photography publication and partner of Student Focus) and a chance to take over the BJP’s Instagram feed.
The Sony World Photography Awards are the world’s largest photography competition, and its Student Focus programme has proved to be a launchpad for many students to break into the photographic industry and given young photographers the opportunity to be recognised globally. The winner will be revealed on April 21.
De Abreu’s shortlisted image is a portrait of Tony Mac, a fellow student who is part of the SRC council at Stellenbosch and a born free, a person born from the year 1994 onward, the year of the first democratic elections.
Talking about being shortlisted De Abreu comments: “I am incredibly humbled by this and the idea that people are interested in my work. It motivates me to pursue my ideas and to keep using my photography as a way of giving a voice to the voiceless.”
De Abreu, and the other shortlisted photographers, will now shoot a new series of images using the highly acclaimed A7 ILCE-7K full frame camera from Sony – given to each shortlisted student as part of their prize. The student’ shortlisted images will all be shown at Somerset House, London from April 22 to May 8 as part of the 2016 Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition and will be published in the annual Sony World Photography Awards book.
From this new work, an expert panel of judges will select one winner who will receive Sony photography equipment for their university.
Commenting on her student’s success Mark Antonello, Lecturer in Photography, says: “We are exceptionally proud of receiving a nomination for one of our students to be selected for the Student Focus shortlist 2016! Our photography department has now had three consecutive nominations from 2014, 2015 and now in 2016! This prestigious contest is the jewel in the crown and one we aspire to every year. Stellenbosch Academy of Design and Photography strives to develop and expose our photography students to the highest calibre of talent and expertise in the industry and we believe that the Sony World Photography Awards Student Focus Awards represents this for our students. We are very proud to represent the emerging talent from Stellenbosch and be a part of this industry leading global contest.”
The shortlist was chosen by a panel of photography experts, including Simon Bainbridge, Editor of the British Journal of Photography (UK), Mark Murrmann, Photo Editor of Mother Jones, and Matthew Tucker, Picture Editor of BuzzFeed UK. Students who entered were judged on one image.
l www.worldphoto.org, #SWPA, #SWPAStudentFocus, and @World PhotoOrg