At the official opening of the 2018 ‘Head On Photo Festival’ at UNSW Art & Design Paddington on Friday 4 May, the festival announced the advent of a brand new award, presented in partnership with the NSW Government. ‘Stories of NSW’, The NSW Art’s Minister’s Award for Visual Storytelling is a first of its kind in Australia and will award $10,000 to a project aimed at recording contemporary life in NSW.
Head On 2018 Landscape NSW Award Winner: Jasmine Poole, Middle Kingdoms- Wan Wah, Forbes NSW, 2018. Courtesy the artist and Head On Photo Festival, Sydney
The winner’s work will be acquired and exhibited at the State Library of NSW during the ‘Head On Photo Festival’ in 2019. The award is open to NSW artists for works that fall under the category of fine art photography, photojournalism, or documentary photography telling the stories of NSW. Entries close 11 June and applications can be submitted at www.headon.com.au/
Don Harwin, the Minister for the Arts NSW, commented on the new award, ‘The diverse and vibrant communities of NSW set the ideal platform for visual storytelling. ‘Stories of NSW’ is a wonderful theme that gives photographers wide scope to depict contemporary life in NSW. I look forward to announcing the inaugural winner next year and exhibiting their work as we celebrate the Festival’s tenth anniversary.’
Since 2010 the ‘Head On Photo Festival’ has exhibited works from emerging and established photographers worldwide. In 2018, the Festival runs from 5-20 May with over 100 exhibitions around the city of Sydney.
