Chris Hondros prize acceptance speech 3 May 2018

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Acceptance speech at the Chris Hondros Award, 3 May 2018, New York

 

A heartfelt thank you to everyone, who makes this prize possible, especially the board of the Fund, Christina, Pancho, Todd, Jeff. Thank you for awarding it this year to work that is super slow-burn, un-iconic and far from the frontlines. Thank you for recognising work that is dead unsexy. 

This sort of slow and up-close work often calls on courage not of the physical sort, but more of the emotional and moral strain — perhaps as important in our times. 

My work is not on conflict itself but what broadly might be seen as some of the deep underlying roots of some of the points of tension and inflexion in the world that we live in. Inequalities – global and local – hidden histories, traumas beneath our skin. 

In this time of image and information saturation, I’m trying to work more slowly, intentionally and thoughtfully. I’ve been asking myself if I’m just adding to the digital noise otherwise. 

Even in the 7 quick years I’ve been a full-time photographer, the way images are being consumed has changed significantly. A photo essay that I spent much of a year working on runs online and it seems to be consumed and spat out in two hours.  

How do we be useful photographers anymore? How do we speak in a very noisy and distracted room — and be heard? And having got their attention, how do we make people care?

How does one do advocacy on issues in closed societies? The strategies that we know often assume an open society tolerant of a contestation of views, politics and ideologies. That’s often not the case in the societies where I work.

I have more questions than answers at this crossroads in my work and life. 

It is a great honour to join the list of fine colleagues who have been awarded this prize and, in a sense, been tasked to carry on the memory and work of a very special documentarian of our times, Chris Hondros, who, like his compatriot Tim Hetherington, not just bore witness but was thoughtful, fluidly multidisciplinary and experimental before his time. 

I think of what they would be attempting in story-telling today, if they were among us. Might they too have more questions than answers? 

…”

  • excerpt from my acceptance speech

video by Mike Kamber, with thanks and congratulations too!


Flying back to Beijing brimming with ideas, inspiration, emotions and exhaustion after an intense 20 days in New York.

Participated in the Magnum Foundation immersive storytelling lab, did a performative reading of my Cold War history project “One Day We’ll Understand” at their Photography Expanded: Counter-Historiessymposium on Tuesday where I learnt from many inspiring presentations by Mimi CheronoTomas VhLaura Wexler and many others.

Also enjoyed a great night presenting my “Fallout” Nobels Fredssenter | Nobel Peace Center project on nuclear weapons, alongside ICP dean emeritus Fred Ritchin and nuclear historian Alex Wellerstein. Thank you to Kristen LubbenEmma Raynes and the whole team at Magnum Foundation for hosting us.

Spoke in classes at ICP – International Center of Photography and Stanford in New York, thanks to Danielle Jackson , Elizabeth Kilroy for that. Caught up with mentors, friends and colleagues not seen for some years.

Listened to several interesting lectures, saw a number of museum and gallery exhibitions, and went to some open studios.

And finally, last night, accepted the The Chris Hondros Fund award and made a short speech reflecting on my work and where we are as image-makers and documentarians of our time:
http://chiyinsim.com/acceptance-speech-at-the-chris-hondro…/

Thank you to all friends and colleagues who made all this possible. Till next time, goodbye New York.