History in the frame for worldwide photography competition

NZ Herald

26 Nov, 2020 01:56 AM2 mins to read

Overall winner: Mchael Marsh - The Brighton Palace Pier. Photo / Supplied

Michael Marsh's picture of the Brighton Palace Pier is an evocative and poignant winner of the Historic Photographer of the Year 2020: Union flags fly in the breeze above the once-glorious Victorian construction battered by a turbulent sea and showing the ravages of time and tide, an allegory for 2020 as Britain faces more pain and disruption from the Coronavirus pandemic and an uncertain future as Brexit looms on the near horizon. The image is not just a photograph of an historic place but is also rooted in British art history, of William Turner and Marcus Gheeraerts' Ditchley portrait of Elizabeth I.

Historic England winner: Adam Burton's picture of St Michaels Church, Somerset, in the mist. Photo / Supplied

This is the fourth year of awards from Trip Historic and Historic England that celebrate the very best historic places and cultural sites across the globe.

The awards attracted entries from every corner of the globe from both amateur and professional photographers and are judged on their composition, originality, technical proficiency as well as the story and historical impact of the image.

Where History Happened winner: Martin Chamberlain's sombre shot of Palmyra, Syria. Photo / Supplied

Awards judge Dan Snow said, "Historic Photographer of the Year shines a light on the fascinating beauty of the world's historical sites. These cultural monuments stand as testament to the incredible stories that took place all around us. The call for photographers to comb through their archives saw everything from abandoned urban landscapes and utterly transporting shots of the world's greatest cultural locations to Arthurian captures of historical wonders cloaked in other-worldly mists."

Shortlisted: Dmitry Bogdanov's picture of St Basil's Cathedral, Red Square, Moscow. Photo / Supplied

The Historic England category was won by Adam Burton with an aerial view of St Michael's Church in Somerset, surrounded in early-morning mist, while a new category, Where History Happened, was scooped by Martin Chamberlain with a sombre shot of the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria.

Shortlisted: Poulnabrone Dolmen, County Clare, Ireland by Todor Tilev. Photo / Supplied

Commenting on the overall winning entry, Dan Korn from Sky History said: "This submission was genuinely outstanding and truly captured the faded splendour of the pier, and the rusting catafalque beneath. The beautiful framing, turbulent seas and storm clouds gathering made for an entry that was a well-deserved overall winner in an absolutely wonderful range of entries this year."