Heart of the Festival entitled "FESTIVAL OF ETHICAL PHOTOGRAPHY OF LODI 2020. Looks on the new world" to be held in Lodi from 26 September to 25 October 2020 is the World Report Award. Six sections that will compose it, with the relative winners chosen by the Jury composed of Alberto Prina - Festival of Ethical Photography, Aldo Mendichi - Festival of Ethical Photography, Sarah Leen - Ex Photo Editor of National Geographic, Peter Bitzer - Director of the Laif agency .
Starting from the MASTER category, won by the Russian Nikita Teryoshin with Nothing Personal – the back office of war, a journey behind the scenes of the world defense business and the back office of war; the SPOTLIGHT category goes to the British Mary Turner and her Dispossessed, a story of the social problems of the north-east of England due to the crisis in the coal industry; the SINGLE SHOT section with a single shot by Francesca Mangiatordi on the Cremona nurse; the SHORT STORY category was won by the Italian Rosa Maraniello with Vitiligo, an intimate story in the world of vitiligo; the German Ingmar Björn Nolting won the STUDENT category with the work “Measure and Middle” – a journey through Germany during the COVID-19 Pandemic, a journey that tells about Germany during the lockdown; finally the MOTHER EARTH category, which is also the thematic space of the Festival, won by the Italian Dario De Dominicis with To the Left of Christ, which takes us to Guanabara Bay, the natural port of Rio de Janeiro, where industrial development it is grabbing the territory to the detriment of traditional fishing.
Mother Earth will also be the name of the new space that contains three reportages on the theme: Pablo Ernesto Piovano with the intense The awakening of ancient voices, in which the story tells the struggle for survival of the Mapuche community in South America; the award-winning Canadian photographer Aaron Vincent Elkaim with A State of Erosion: 2016-2019, which recounts the difficulties of native communities in the province of Manitoba, Canada, following the crisis in the hydroelectric sector; finally the Dutch Jasper Doest with Flamingo Bob, a beautiful story of a red flamingo who has become an official FDOC testimonial. These exhibitions will be outdoors, in the city's public spaces. Photography then leaves the palaces and exhibition venues to meet the public in the streets and parks.
But going back to the subtitle of this year's edition, great attention will be paid to the section Uno Sguardo sul Mondo which offers four itineraries: two are proposed by AFP which, through the gaze of various photographers, will tell the story of Covid in the world and the very recent protests in Hong Kong; the British Andrew Testa, on the other hand, with his A nation divided will tell, between 2015 and 2020, England at the time of Brexit; the Australian Matthew Abbott takes us to the Black Summer, i.e. the fire season that violently devastates the hinterland of his island every year.
A completely new space will be Stories of Courage, which will host two high-impact exhibitions: the American photographer Maggie Stebber, who documented the first facial transplant in the United States to a very young patient; New Zealander Robin Hammond with an important work on gender issues.
The world of humanitarian organizations will be quite articulated: starting with the exhibition of photographer Alessio Romenzi who followed Doctors Without Borders in action right in the Lodi area during the Covid emergency.
Other spaces are planned for NGOs that use photography as a communication tool.
Unmissable is the appointment with the Voglino Prize which this year was assigned to Turinese Giorgio Negro and his Pathos, which tells the duality of Good and Evil, which is always sharpened during wartime that the photographer experienced firsthand.
Another important novelty this year is the involvement and support of the Municipality of Codogno, the first city in the red zone. Through the collaboration with Roma Fotografia and the magazine Il Fotografo, the impact of the virus that has changed the planet will be told through stories that will offer a global and a local vision of the historical period we are experiencing.
At the same time as the Festival, FFE – OFF will take place, a circuit of photographic exhibitions, exhibited in shops, bars, restaurants, galleries, cultural clubs and public areas of the city.
The purpose of FFE – OFF is to enhance and disseminate the works of anyone who wants to propose their own creations. For this reason there are no thematic or genre constraints, as FFE – OFF is not an extension of the main program of the Festival of Ethical Photography.
A decidedly "powerful" edition which, in addition to the quality of the exhibitions, will be characterized by the level of meetings, guided tours with photographers, portfolio readings, book presentations and educational activities aimed at middle and high school students .
Finally, it will be possible: to meet some of the authors of the proposed reportages, to have the book of the favorite author purchased at the Festival bookshop autographed.
The Festival of Ethical Photography of Lodi this year will also count on the support of the Municipality of Lodi.
To comply with the rules on gatherings, it is suggested that as much as possible the use of the ticket office will be online, with the need to book, in order to avoid queues and uncomfortable situations.
Info: www.festivaldellafotografiaetica.it
Cover image: © McArthur – Festival of Ethical Photography 2020
