Silver Camera 2014

Moscow House of Photography Museum presents Silver Camera 2014, an exhibition of work by participants in the 15th contest for the best Moscow photoreportage. Moreover, Silver Camera 2014 takes place in the venue where the first contest was held fifteen years ago, Manege Central Exhibition Hall. Photo series by past Grand Prix winners will be shown, as well as the work of this year’s contestants. The exhibition also includes a wide-ranging historical overview of Moscow from professional photographers and amateurs of the last century.

The Silver Camera contest began in the late 1990s, a unique decade characterized by the emergence and development of incredible ideas and bold dreams. Creative Moscow was particularly vibrant as the image of the city and its people rapidly altered. The desire to embrace these changes seemed natural and necessary. Such ideas were already quite common in many European capitals, for example the French Department of Culture has systematically collected and displayed historic and contemporary photographic art dedicated to Paris. These images are preserved at the Musée d’Art Moderne, Bibliothèque Historique de la Ville de Paris, the European House of Photography, etc.

The main aim of the contest established by the Moscow City Government and Moscow Department of Culture is to create a photo chronicle of contemporary Moscow and support Russian photographers. Photojournalism or street photography, which plays a very important role in creating the photo archive of history, is now passing through a difficult period. We have a better understanding of Russian history in the 19th and 20th centuries due to official commissions for photography with a particular theme or intent, but this had almost disappeared by the 1980s. One of the guiding principles was to attract amateurs to the contest, to discover new names and lure young people to photography and photojournalism.

The first Silver Camera contest was held in 2000. Photo series made from 1999 to 2000 were selected for participation in the contest. Traditionally the contest consists of three sections: ‘Architecture’, ‘Events and Everyday Life’ and ‘People’. The contest has always been open to any applicant, whether they are professionals, amateurs, teenagers, students or accomplished masters of Russian photography. Grand Prix winners are chosen by a jury that includes top Russian photographers, picture editors from authoritative media outlets, and the heads of Moscow museums and galleries.

For the last 15 years Silver Camera has been the only photography award in Russia offering a serious monetary reward. The contest also provides the opportunity of an internship abroad. More than 50 photographers have visited Paris and Dusseldorf, and 10 participated in important world photography forums including those in Paris and Arles. The Silver Camera contest would like to thank its strategic partners. The contest could not exist without support from MasterCard, Rosbank, Renault, Ahmad Tea and Panasonic.

The Silver Camera exhibition moved from the Manege to the Moscow House of Photography Museum, then to the Royal Tower at Kazansky Station. New technology is constantly developing and providing new opportunities for contemporary photographers. Fifteen years ago only one photo series taken with a digital camera was accepted for the contest, while today most of the contestants’ work is digital. As the years passed backpacks full of snapshots were replaced by emails and the participants’ attention to detail (quality of printing, paper etc.) was also improved.

Since 2000 many stars of Russian contemporary photography have participated in the contest: Igor Mukhin, Boris Saveliev, Alexandre Abaza, Valery Schekoldin, Vadim Guschin, Sergei Bermeniev, Urii Palmin, Pavel Kassin, etc. The contest has brought the work of Vladimir Mishukov, Nataliya Maksimova, Eduard Ilyin and Ilya Egorkin to public attention. The youngest participant was 10 and the oldest prizewinner, Igor Makov, was 75.

For 15 years the exhibition has shown a sensitive attitude to the prevailing zeitgeist and recorded changes in the city. In 2012 photographers produced images of political protests, the historical reconstruction of the Battle of Borodino and renovation of Gorky Park; in 2013 they photographed the GUM 120th anniversary, ecological concerns in the city, the problems of loneliness and computer addiction. Reportage for Silver Camera 2014 shows the reconstruction of VDNKh, holidays and festivals, the March of Peace and family values. Many works submitted to the contest this year relate to the problem of privacy, to the relations between human beings and the world around them, analyzing the difficulties and joys encountered.

One of the most important prizes in the Silver camera contest is the People’s Choice Award (Ahmad Tea Prize). Each visitor to the exhibition can join the jury and choose the winner by filling in a questionnaire at the exhibition or voting on the website www.silvercamera.ru. Photos exhibited at the Manege are anonymous to ensure fairness in the voting process. The winner of the People’s Choice Award receives an award comparable to the main prize.