The 2015 Sony World Photography Awards is acknowledging the lifetime work of Elliott Erwitt with a prize and an exhibition.
Renowned Magnum photographer Elliott Erwitt will be honoured at the 2015 Sony World Photography Awards. Erwitt, aged 86, will attend the awards to receive the Outstanding Contribution to Photography prize at the awards’ annual gala dinner in London on April 23.
There will also be an exhibition celebrating a combination of Erwitt’s most familiar and lesser known work from across his 60 year career at Somerset House, London from April 24 to May 10 as part of the Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition. And there will be a rare public talk between Erwitt and his long-time book designer Stuart Smith on April 24.
Since joining the Magnum photo agency in 1953, the French-born American has captured historic events, personalities, humour and the absurd in candid and sometimes ironic black and white images. Describing his craft, Erwitt says: “To me, photography is an art of observation, it’s about finding something interesting in an ordinary place. I’ve found it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them.”
While Erwitt’s images of US President Richard Nixon, actor Marilyn Monroe and Parisian dogs are instantly recognisable, the photographer has produced a huge body of diverse work across stills and film and he continues to do so. The exhibition at Somerset House will showcase this range with Erwitt’s vast collection of book publications, a collection of archive prints, a digital presentation of his personal best (Erwitt’s favourite photographs) and a selection of his films.
The Outstanding Contribution to Photography Award is given each year by the Sony World Photography Awards in recognition of a photographer’s significance on the photographic industry. Previous recipients include Eve Arnold, William Klein, Marc Riboud, William Eggleston and Mary Ellen Mark. Astrid Merget Motsenigos, Creative Director of the World Photography Organisation and organiser of the awards, comments: “Elliott is entirely unique and independent in every way. Photography is part of his very fabric, but he also clearly separates what he calls his ‘hobby’, from his client work. To most, there will be no noticeable difference between the two. That is what makes him a master.”
On the same evening Elliott Erwitt will receive his award at the 2015 Sony World Photography Awards Gala Ceremony the winners of the awards’ professional categories and the overall L’Iris d’Or / Sony World Photography Awards Photographer of the Year will be announced. Alongside Erwitt’s exhibition at Somerset House, the winning and shortlisted photographers of the 2015 Sony World Photography Awards will also be on display.
Jacqueline Kennedy at the funeral of her husband John F. Kennedy, November 25, 1963. Elliott Erwitt's images have ranged from the profound to quirky everyday incidents.
Jacqueline Kennedy at Arlington Cemetery in Washington on November 25, 1963, at the funeral of John F. Kennedy. Elliott Erwitt image.
