"The visual nature of Grahamstown's social dynamic coupled with the guidance of certain lecturers at Rhodes continue to mould my thoughts today," says Russell Bruns.
"The visual nature of Grahamstown's social dynamic coupled with the guidance of certain lecturers at Rhodes continue to mould my thoughts today," says Russell Bruns.
The Rhodes University School of Fine Art student beat photographers worldwide in the 2014 Sony Student Focus World Photography Awards.
He is one of two South African finalists. The other student is Tara Mette, of the Stellenbosch Academy of Design & Photography. They are among 10 other shortlisted student photographers from around the world.
Bruns, aged 26, is from Paarl and is studying a Masters in Fine Art in Photography at Rhodes.
As a finalist he has won the latest full-frame camera from Sony – the α7 – which he must now use to fulfil the second brief of the competition: Shoot a series of images under the title 'Self-portraits'. One winning series will be chosen by the judges from this work.
Student Focus is one of the largest international programmes for photography students.
Involving 230 educational institutions worldwide, its aim is to support and inspire the future generation of photographers.
It provides a professional network of contacts and offers a variety of competitions, tutorials and opportunities to help talented emerging photographers to turn professional.
Many previous finalists of the Student Focus competition are now working regularly in the photography industry.
Bruns secured his place as a finalist with an image titled 'Heewon, Grade 1, Courtrai Primary School, Paarl, South Africa'.
The image was shot in response to a brief asking for a single imageshowing 'Tomorrow’s News'.
Talking about the winning photograph Bruns commented: “I decided to return to myprimary school where I started my schooling in 1994 to observe any changes in the last 20 years.
"The school also happens to be situated a few kilometers from Pollsmoor Prison where Nelson Mandela completed his prison sentence which added to the complexities I was going to observe.
"I first spent a week with Grade Ones (seven-year olds) simply observing – not taking any photographs.
"The second week was spent shooting location shots in the school.
"After getting parental consent to collaborate with the children in my images, I started constructing various photographs which were influenced by what I had observed and my experiences at the school.”
As the other part of their prize, all 10 finalists will be flown to London with their tutors to attend the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards gala ceremony in London on 30 April.
Talking about his student’s success, Brent Meistre, Senior Lecturer and Sectional Head of Photography, said: “We are very excited and proud to have a second student over the past three years as a finalist in the Sony World Photography
Awards Student Focus competition. The awards are a fantastic platform for students to network with other students and photography professionals and is a foot-up into the world of contemporary global photographic practice.”
At the ceremony, the finalists will discover the recipient of the 2014 Student Focus Photographer of the Year title and the grand prize of €35,000 worth of Sony photographic equipment for their university.
In addition, each finalist will see their 'Self-portraits' series shown as part of the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition at Somerset House, London from 1-18 May, and have their work published in the 2014 edition of the annual Sony World Photography Awards book.
For more information about the Student Focus programme go to worldphoto.org/student-focus/
The Student Focus finalist images are available to download at press.worldphoto.org
Promoting photography worldwide
The World Photography Organisation (WPO) supports professional, amateur and young photographers, lending a global platform for the photographic industry to communicate, converge and showcase current trends across all genres of photography.
Delivering various initiatives to this global community, these programmes involve the photographer in commercial, cultural and educational activities within the many industry sectors, while also creating events for the public participation.
Currently included within the WPO portfolio are: the Sony World Photography Awards; the World Photography Student Focus Competition and Youth on Assignment. In addition the WPO have recently launched Photo Shanghai, Asia-Pacific’s premiere international Art Fair focused on photography and The Magazine, a monthly online publication where photography is explored, debated and discussed. WPO also has a thriving online presence via its website, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and engages its online audience via regular PhotoTALK discussions.
For more information go to worldphoto.org
