FRANKFURT.- The Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation and the German Photographic Society (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Photographie, DGPh) have jointly awarded their two prizes for research and journalism in the field of photography. The awards recognise contributions that enrich and promote the academic dialogue on the medium of photography.

DGPh Research Award “Thinking Photography”

Dzifa Peters receives the research award “Thinking Photography” for her dissertation “Tropes of Polarity: Visual Representation and Afrodiasporic Identities”. In it, Peters explores how colonial, postcolonial and Afrodiasporic identities are represented and shaped by contemporary photography. She pays particular attention to the medium's role in preserving memory, determining belonging and communicating different cultural perspectives and identities. Dzifa Peters is a visual artist, a postdoctoral fellow at the Cados Católica Doctoral School, and a junior researcher at the Research Centre for Communication and Culture, both at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa in Portugal. The research award “Thinking Photography” is endowed with €3,000 and honours publications from the field of photographic theory and history that expand the topic area with important approaches from the humanities, cultural studies and social sciences.

The jury explained its selection as follows: “With this inspiring study, Dzifa Peters presents an academically outstanding work that addresses a current issue. In it, she uses different photographic positions and art-based research to explore changes in cultural identity through photography, focusing specifically on the context of West Africa and its diaspora in Europe. In doing so, she not only makes an important contribution to photographic research, but also provides a linguistically accentuated, differentiated and extremely well-founded text. We were particularly impressed by the skilful inclusion of her own artistic practice.”

DGPh Award for Innovative Publication “Writing Photography”

The “Writing Photography” award goes to Esther Gabrielle Kersley for her commentary “The hooded man at the computer: What are cyber images telling us?”, published as part of the European Leadership Network (ELN). Considering the growing importance of new technologies in all areas of life, Kersley examines images that are intended to illustrate abstract topics such as cybersecurity and artificial intelligence. She focuses on visuals that often depict anonymised figures in front of screens or abstract streams of data, and sheds light on the messages they convey. In doing so, Kersley explores how these images can influence the discussion of the potential risks and challenges of new technologies and shape perceptions of digital developments. Esther Gabrielle Kersley is a London-based photographer and artist. As an award for innovative publication, “Writing Photography” honours written formats such as essays, blog posts or columns that combine text and photographic material in a creative way. The prize is endowed with €1,000.

In its statement, the jury writes: “Our current visual world has undergone rapid and constant change in recent years. This has had a profound impact on the way we use and understand photography. Based on interviews with cybersecurity experts, Esther Gabrielle Kersley's awarded illustrated commentary not only reveals the hurdles involved in visualising new technologies, but also explores how such images influence our perceptions of the risks and opportunities of the digital world. The format and content, as well as the communication of photographic and image-theoretical considerations to a non-specialist audience, were compelling and timely.”

The jury

The winners of the two prizes are selected every other year by a changing, international jury. This year's jury members are: Dr. Charlotte Bruns, Postdoctoral Researcher and Lecturer, Erasmus University Rotterdam, winner of “Thinking Photography” 2022; Alexandra König, Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation; Nela Eggenberger, Editor-in-Chief and Artistic Director, EIKON – International Journal of Photography and Media Art; and Miriam Zlobinski, Member of the Board of the History and Archives Section, DGPh.