ArtLab is moving away from its usual programming focused on the interface between art, science and technology to host Hope. This photo exhibition presents the work of the 12 finalists of the 2019 Prix Pictet award, selected from over 600 nominees. The images reveal moments of triumph in the face of adversity, and the product of efforts made to preserve the environment. Together, they demonstrate how optimism can encourage change.
In a ceremony at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, Ivorian photographer Joana Choumali was presented with the eighth Prix Pictet for her series Ça va aller (It will be ok) on this edition’s theme of Hope. Her winning series presents photographs taken three weeks after the terrorist attacks in Grand Bassam on Sunday March 13th, 2016.
Choumali said "This work is a way to address the way Ivorian people deal with trauma and mental health. Each stitch was a way to recover, to lay down the emotions, the loneliness, and mixed feelings I felt. Adding embroidery on these street photographs was an act of channelling hope and resilience."
Perhaps in our ability to carry on in adversity lies hope for us all. Hope that, despite the catastrophic damage that we have visited upon the natural world and upon the lives of our most vulnerable citizens, it is not too late to reverse the damage that we have done.
Kofi Annan (1938-2018), Hon. President, Prix Pictet, 2017
The Prix Pictet
Prior to its exhibit in Lausanne, the Hope exhibition was inaugurated at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London and was exhibited in Tokyo, Zurich and Moscow. Hope will soon continue its tour by way of New York. The Prix Pictet is an international photography award dedicated to sustainable development. It aims to harness the power of photography to draw global attention to the environmental and social issues facing humanity today. The Prix Pictet has attracted more than 4,200 competitors to date. It has been the subject of more than 90 exhibitions in 40 cities around the world and attracted nearly 650,000 visitors. More information on the official website of the Prix Pictet.