The 5th Annual FotoEvidence Book Award Goes to Marcus Bleasdale for “Inferno: Central African Republic” Svetlana Bachevanova, publisher of FotoEvid

FE logo - BW smart objects

The 5th Annual FotoEvidence Book Award

Goes to Marcus Bleasdale for

“Inferno: Central African Republic”

0001

Inferno: Central African Republic by Marcus Bleasdale

Svetlana Bachevanova, publisher of FotoEvidence, announced today that the jury members Annie Boulat(Cosmos), Dimitri Beck (Polka), Mark Murrmann (Mother Jones), Cheryl Newman (Telegraph) and David Stuart ( FotoEvidence) selected Marcus Bleasdale to be the winner of the 2015 FotoEvidence Book Award for his project “Inferno: Central African Republic.”

“In our fifth year, FotoEvidence is proud to name Marcus Bleasdale as the winner of the FotoEvidence Book Award. His work “Inferno” from the Central African Republic alerts the world to the brutality unfolding there, while the world’s media have been focused on other places. His personal commitment and courage in documenting this humanitarian crisis are evident in the photographs. Both Marcus and his project embody exactly the values that FotoEvidence has sought to recognize and support during the last five years.”

Marcus Bleasdale focuses his lens on under-reported stories related to conflict and human rights. He shot Inferno: Central African Republic over the last 18 months but he has reported from the Central African Republic (CAR) for 15 years, often stories related to the impact of conflict on populations and the abuses of the Lords Resistance Army . Working closely with Peter Bouckaert from Human Rights Watch he traveled into areas that hadn’t been visited for more than six months due to the insecurity, he traveled to places where neighbors, who had lived together peacefully for years, were slaughtering each other in a complex conflict where the population was being manipulated by politics and greed. His camera witnessed maiming and killing, to provide evidences for potential accountability and justice.

IMG 0293

Marcus Bleasdale is dedicated to covering issues underreported and forgotten by today’s media. He uses his work to influence policy makers around the world. His work covering human rights abuses and conflict have been shown at the U.S. Senate, The U.S. House of Representatives, The United Nations and the Houses of Parliament in the UK.

Marcus has been awarded with the 2015 FotoEvidence Book Award, The UNICEF Photographer of the Year Award (2004), The OPC Olivier Rebbot Award for Best Foreign Reporting (2005), Magazine Photographer of the Year award POYi (2005), The Alexia Foundation Award for World Peace (2005), The World Press Awards (2006), The Freedom of Expression Foundation Norway (2007), Days Japan (2009), The Anthropographia Award for Photography and Human Rights (2010), The Hansel Meith Award (2010) and the Photo Book of the Year Award POYi (2010), Freedom of Expression Foundation Norway (2011), Webby Award (2011) News and Politics for his multimedia piece Dear Obama. In 2012 Marcus’ film for MSF was nominated for an Emmy together with other VII photographers. In 2014 Marcus’ work for National Geographic Magazine won a World Press Photo Award and the Photography award at the Overseas Press Club of America. He was also awarded the Society of Environmental Journalists award for his work in DRC on Conflict minerals.

FINALISTS

Fabio Bucciarelli: On The Brink of An Abyss

SouthSudan 08

Fabio Bucciarelli: On The Brink of An Abyss.

Matt Black: The Geography of Poverty

GeographyOfPoverty001

Matt Black: The Geography of Poverty

Jan Grarup: Somalia in Transition

Somaliaintransition04

Jan Grarup: Somalia in Transition.

Daniele Volpe: Guatemala- Ixil Genocide

05 Guatemala-Ixil Genocide

Daniele Volpe: Guatemala- Ixil Genocide

Prior FotoEvidence Book Award Winners
2014 – Majid Saeedi, “Life in War”
2013 – Robin Hammond, “Condemned: Mental Health in African Countries in Crisis”
2012 – Alex Masi, “Bhopal Second Disaster”
2011 – Javier Arcenillas, “Sicarios: Latin American Assassins”

About FotoEvidence:
Now in it’s sixth year, FotoEvidence is a publishing house for documentary photographers whose work focuses on social justice and human rights. Every year the FotoEvidence Book Award recognizes a photo project documenting evidence of social injustice with the publication of a book. The selected project is published as part of a FotoEvidence series of books dedicated to the work of photographers whose commitment and courage deliver painful truths, creating an awareness and intolerance toward violations of human dignity.

For more information or to request an interview with the 2015 FotoEvidence Book Award winner and finalists please contact: Svetlana@FotoEvidence.com

Images are available upon request.

1px