Animals are being treated like disposable items in industrialized Western societies. Innumerable animals end up each year in animal shelters, rescue centers or animal sanctuaries. Or, if they aren’t that lucky, die in a slaughterhouse.

The reasons why they continue to suffer and die in these places are as varied as they are many. Overwhelmed pet owners who aren’t familiar with exotic species and were, after all, only looking for something pretty to adorn their living room… Beloved pets which become a burden and are then thrown away.

Particularly during the pandemic, many purchased a pet without thinking about the long-term consequences. And now, animal shelters are fuller than ever before. The animals who rely on their owners for protection are completely dependent upon them, and that doesn’t change merely because it gets colder outside or vacation with all its promises is just around the corner.

But some of us forget the duties entailed when we purchase a living creature… all too enticing is their attraction. But the suffering they must endure as a result is severe. Many of us look the other way, and others don’t want to have anything to do with it. You’ll encounter the entire bandwidth of characters in this book. From brave sheep, to wild birds, or even nimble rats. But they all have one thing in common: They have all experienced trauma from which they bear the scars. Some openly visible while others lie hidden deep inside.

SARA AFFOLTER is a young photographer from Switzerland and lives near Solothurn. She completed her studies with a degree in Photography in 2022, and was awarded the Solothurn Prize for Cultural Promotion for her project ‘Das Tier als Wegwerfware’, which translates to ‘Animals as Disposable Items’. She participated twice in the Canon Student Development Programme as part of the Visa pour l’Image festival. Her photographic work is now dedicated to animal protection as well as to personal projects in the area of reportage photography.

We are delighted to announce the EXHIBITION for the book : Sara Affolter – ‘WEGWERFWARE’ . On display from 2 December, 2022 – 8 January, 2023 . Vernissage: 9 Dec., 2022, 7 pm . Künstlerhaus S11, Schmiedengasse 11, CH – 4502 Solothurn.

WEGWERFWARE by Sara Affolter . 22.5 × 27.5 cm . 96 pages . 53 photos . German . Hardcover, weight: 1 kg . ISBN 978-3-903101-95-1 . EUR 39.90 GoSee : edition.lammerhuber.at//wegwerfware
11.12.2022 show complete article

On 14 November, 2022, the winners of the international Global Peace Photo Award competition were awarded the Alfred Fried Peace Medal at the Austrian Parliament for the tenth time. The main prize Peace Image of the Year 2022 of 10,000 euros went to the Indian photographer Sourav Das with an image from his reportage on how, during the worldwide Corona-related education emergency, the initiative of the Indian teacher Deepnarayan Nayak turned the walls of the houses in his village into school blackboards. The best peace image in the children’s and youth category, ‘Children’s Peace Image of the Year’ 2022, worth 1000 euros, was won by 10-year-old Zoya Yeadon from Mauritius.

In his welcoming speech, Wolfgang Sobotka, President of the Austrian National Council, emphasized the extraordinary cooperation with the Global Peace Photo Award and how important it is to provide a forum for peace in these times. In the future, this commitment will be even more noticeable in the Austrian Parliament. The pictures of the award winners will each be shown in the auditorium for one year. This is the room where mainly press conferences will take place.

Winners of Global Peace Photo Awards 2022:
Ana Maria Arévalo Gosen from Venezuela for ‘Sinfonía desordenada – A wild Symphony’
Artem Humilevskiy from Ukraine for ‘Giant. Riese.’
Mary Gelman from Russia for: ‘Minya and Tatjana’
Maryam Firuzi from Iran for ‘The scattered memories of distorted future’
Sourav Das from India for ‘A Small Yet Great Victory Over the Pandemic’

Peace Image of the Year 2022
For millions of girls and boys, Covid meant no schooling of any kind for months. And for countless other children, this is still, or again, true. It has become sadly clear: Covid has created an educational emergency across the world, which goes beyond the loss of learning the times table. In many poorer countries, closing the schools also means that children forego their only certain meal of the day. But there were and still are wonderful exceptions. Like the initiative of Indian teacher Deepnarayan Nayak, who simply moved the school in his village outdoors. He turned the walls of the houses into blackboards. Indian photographer Sourav Das captured everyday scenes of this unusually creative and lovable village school. He has created a small monument to this peaceful action. It realizes, on the lowest conceivable level, one of the 54 articles of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child: the right of access to education.

Sourav Das, born in 1987, calls his camera an instrument of learning. He refers to famous Henri Cartier-Bresson when he says: With one eye, you look at the world, with the other into yourself. In 2011 Das obtained a Master of Arts, then focused on photography. He sees himself as a street photographer, he wants to document social change in his society. He trusts photography to be as expressive as a novella, a song or a painting.

The Children’s Peace Image of the Year 2022
Her photo ‘Dreaming in the Peaceful Sea’ – seemingly weightless floating amid dancing light reflections and a deep blue. Zoya Yeadon is a good swimmer. But that is the most unspectacular thing you can say about her. Born in Mauritius, she really is, as her father says, ‘a nomad at heart’. Curious about the world. She has spent the last five years in a mobile home in which she has traveled through more than 80 countries. She is being taught within a program of Wolsey Hall Oxford, a home-schooling college founded in 1894.

The award was presented by Elisabeth Stadler, General Manager and Chairwoman of the Managing Board of Vienna Insurance Group (VIG).

Lois Lammerhuber, who initiated the Global Peace Photo Award together with his wife Silvia Lammerhuber and has organized it since the beginning, reminds us that: “Peace is not the absence of war, but something I would like to call ‘successful living’. Every year, the photos and stories submitted touch us once more with their creativity and passion for what is good and peaceful in this world.”

Invited by Barbara Trionfi, outgoing Director of the International Press Institute (IPI), Joanna Krawcyk, President of the Gazeta Wyborcza Foundation, Chairwoman of the Leading European Newspaper Alliance and ‘Golden Pen of Press Freedom’ awardee, made a plea for the value of photography in the perception of the world: “What we are clearly witnessing now is an intensification of visual culture, photography has become extremely important as a vehicle of change and a means of protest. Describing the world with images in a pluralistic media environment can only work in societies guided by freedom of information and expression. That is a core element of any functioning democracy – freedom of the media, and I see it as essential to the protection of human rights.”

Ten Years of Global Peace Photo Award
Peter-Matthias Gaede, Editor-in-Chief of GEO magazine 1994 – 2014, paid tribute to the 10th anniversary of the Global Peace Photo Award: “In the ten years of its existence, the Global Peace Photography Award has grown in size in almost every field.

The jury has become a large orchestra. 29 women and men from nine nations now belong to it – from six European countries, but also from Latin America, China and the US. The submissions of about 15,000 photos each year come from around 120 countries. Only apparently attracted by a compelling idea, the annual awards have become a summit of globally recognized advocates of peace and human rights.”

Nobel Peace Prize Laureates

The evening’s keynote address was given by Alexander Cherkasov, representing the Memorial Human Rights Centre together with the Center of Civil Liberties from Ukraine and Belarusian dissident and human rights activist Ales Bjalyazki. “Indeed, Memorial has spent many years trying to do something similar to the laureates at today’s ceremony: to record the past, the totalitarian past of Russia and Europe in the twentieth century, the century of totalitarian empires, to prevent it from happening again. Never again.

What kind of memory is needed for this? What was worth preserving to prevent a repeat? The memory of the victims, of course. And another memory – the experience of living in dignity under unimaginable circumstances. The memory of resistance. And also: to remember, of course, is to fight. Fighting against the impunity of criminals. (…) So the Human Rights Centre dealt with contemporary human rights violations in the post-Soviet wars. We documented, we helped, we demanded justice. (…) A life in search of meaning. The enlightenment of hearts. I think this is the right way. That is exactly what you are doing too. Through the magic of photography, through the magic of light, you stop the moment. With a flash of light, you illuminate people’s souls. I would like to think that we are pursuing a common cause.”

About the Global Peace Photo Award 2022
14,157 images from 115 countries were submitted for the Global Peace Photo Award 2022. Most of the submissions came from China, Russia, India, the USA and Iran. The submissions were judged by a distinguished international jury: www.friedaward.com/jury

Besides the Peace Image of the Year 2022 awarded to Sourav, Alfred Fried Peace Medals also went in 2022 to: Ana Maria Arévalo Gosen, Artem Humilevski, Mary Gelman, and Maryam Firuzi.

The Global Peace Photo Award is organized by Edition Lammerhuber and Photographische Gesellschaft (PHG) in partnership with UNESCO, Austrian Parliament, Austrian Parliamentary Reporting Association, International Press Institute (IPI), German Youth Photography Award, World Press Photo Foundation, POY LATAM, LensCulture, and Vienna Insurance Group.

The prize was inspired by the Austrian pacifist and writer Alfred Hermann Fried (* 11 November 1864 in Vienna; † 4 May 1921 in Vienna). Fried was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1911 together with the organizer of the Hague Conference on Private International Law Tobias Asser. 

GoSee www.friedaward.com
29.11.2022 show complete article

The final day of the Photo Festival in Baden, on 16 October 22, broke all previous records. In weather fit for a kaiser, a total of 9,865 photo aficionados flooded the small streets and gardens of the World Heritage town. This resulted in an increase of 31% in the number of visitors in Baden alone compared to the year before.

All together, 485,277 visitors came to the La Gacilly-Baden Photo Festival and its exhibition partners in Tulln and Celje. While 103,207 guests came to Tulln, the exhibition in Celje, themed upon the topic of ‘Peace’, attracted 142,000 photography fans. Adding the 300,000 visitors of La Gacilly in Brittany makes the cooperation between the festivals La Gacilly and Baden, with almost 800,000 visitors, by far the largest open-air photography exhibition in Europe.

“My deepest respect and compliments for your incredible multimedia cultural work with regard to both the art on display and organization of the event, currently in two respects: the Festival La Gacilly-Baden and the grand opening with peace photos in Celje, presenting an artistic, and utterly humane countercurrent to war, violence and pandemics. Chapeau!,” is roughly how Jutta Kleedorfer, an enthusiastic visitor, comments on the festival in 2022.

“With the title DUE NORTH!, our photo festival has highlighted the creative power of photo artists from Northern Europe who, since the beginnings of photography, have maintained an almost carnal connection with the ruggedness of their homeland. With their different photographic approaches, the exhibiting photographers share a vision mixed with poetry, occasionally with a touch of surrealism, but always intent on raising awareness for a better understanding of tomorrow’s world. In their own way, they are the artistic guardians of a positive civilisation.” says the festival team. 

“In the second narrative of the festival, two exceptional photographers shed light on the state of our environment: ‘This empty World’ by Nick Brandt is an impressive illustration of a world in which there is barely room for animals to survive, overwhelmed by rampant human development.

And Mathias Depardon shows with ‘The Tears of the Tigris’ that the Garden of Eden exists – and is in danger. Located at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, the largest wetland ecosystem in Western Eurasia, which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2016, is now in danger of drying up.” the team continues.

The 2022 program was also marked by the works of female Austrian photographers: “We had the great honor of presenting three female Austrian photographers: a homage to the great Magnum photographer Inge Morath, a retrospective of the doyenne of Austrian photography Christine de Grancy and the surprising work ‘Camping’ by Verena Andrea Prenner.

“And for the first time, the festival has also awarded a photography commission to Gregor Schörg, only 21-years-old, who used drone photography to portray winter in the Dürrenstein-Lassingtal wilderness area, the first UNESCO World Natural Heritage site in Austria, a work that is just as much a part of the ‘100 Years of Lower Austria’ theme as the photographs of Lower Austrian professional photographers who paid tribute to the beauty of the state of Lower Austria with their images.” Lois Lammerhuber, Director of Festival La Gacilly-Baden Photo, is thrilled to tell us.

An exhibition with the winning photos from CEWE’s ‘Our World is Beautiful’, the world’s largest photo competition with 606,289 photos from 170 countries, made the festival complete.

“Cultural tourism has a long tradition in Baden and inspires visitors with special highlights year after year. As part of ‘100 Years of Lower Austria’, this year’s La Gacilly-Baden Photo Festival also dealt with the history of our beautiful state: With the exhibitions ‘Lower Austria in old picture postcards’ and ‘Wilderness area Dürrenstein-Lassingtal’, the organizers succeeded in paying a very special tribute to Lower Austria.” Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner tells us. 

“The La Gacilly-Baden Photo Festival has become the cultural fixture of the year and attracts many guests to the region every year! Besides the impressive outdoor photo gallery that has just ended, there is much more for visitors to discover in Baden. A short trip or vacation is always worthwhile – even in winter!” Jochen Danninger, Tourism Provincial Councillor.

These comments are also underscored by the presence of 106 domestic and international media which celebrated the 183rd birthday of photography in Baden on 19 August, 2022, during the Long Night of Photography, including ORF, MARKIZA TV, RTL, SAT1, VOX, FAZ, GEO, STERN, NZZ, FIGARO, etc.


“Five years ago, with the La Gacilly-Baden Photo Festival, the city of Baden began to embed photographic art in the public space and to make top international photography accessible in an attractive setting. The concept has been a success – a quarter of a million visitors in 2022 clearly prove that the enthusiasm for the fascination of photography remains unbroken even after five years. Which is why I am already looking forward to the next photo festival, taking place in Baden from 15 June to 15 October 2023, and dedicated to the countries Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran under the title ORIENT!” says Stefan Szirucsek, Mayor of the City of Baden.

Klaus Lorenz, Tourism Director of the City of Baden: “With the festival, Baden becomes one of THE cultural hotspots in Austria. The international art of photography combines with the wonderful garden landscapes and the World Heritage architecture to create a unique synthesis of the arts. For me personally, it is a great pleasure to observe the enthusiasm of the visitors and the lively discussions in front of the photo galleries throughout our city.”

“Hardly a better place could have been chosen to present an international photo festival of the highest order. An excellent selection of the best photographers makes it possible to view the entire spectrum of ‘life’. It takes your breath away to marvel at, absorb and internalize the dignity of the human being in its vulnerability. That is what photography can do. That is what this festival makes possible. A photo festival that has managed in a very short time to take a top position among the world’s photo festivals.” Andreas Eucker, STERN.

Garden Tulln Director Franz Gruber: “The photographic interventions in the Garden Tulln provided many exciting impetuses in the exhibition gardens. Without exception, the reactions of visitors were positive, some absolutely enthusiastic.”

For the first time, Celje in Slovenia participated as a festival partner. A large exhibition of 100 photographs themed upon the topic of ‘Peace’ was seen by 142,000 visitors. Thank you Igor Rosina for the great cooperation.

And this is what the visitors of the photo festival in Baden say or write:

“The articulation of everything – you’ve created such a friendly, human and joyful event. The personality of your festival is strong and quite unique. Bravo!” Charles D.

“I am very happy that I got the chance to see so many excellent photographs, listen to remarkable lectures and meet so many interesting people.” Michal S.

“On the last evening of the festival, photo enthusiasts even stood in front of the pictures with their mobile phone lights. Verena P.

“I have never been so proud to be a citizen of Baden.” Judith H.

Summing up, the festival’s Co-Director Silvia Lammerhuber says: “We are not only happy about the excellent number of visitors and their refreshing interest, but above all about the fact that we were able to convey the photographic and content-related messages of the exhibitions beyond Austria’s borders. As in previous years, a special edition of the exhibitions will be on show in Bratislava from 1 to 30 November, 2022, as part of the ‘Month of Photography’.”

Again in 2023, the La Gacilly-Baden Photo Festival will be dedicated to the relationship between humans and the environment, and invites visitors from 15 June through 15 October to Baden near Vienna under the title ‘ORIENT!’.

In 2018, Edition Lammerhuber initiated and organized the La Gacilly-Baden Photo Festival together with their cooperation partners in La Gacilly for the first time. The festival is the largest open-air photo festival in Europe and takes place each year from June through September in Baden near Vienna.

GoSee : festival-lagacilly-baden.photo & edition.lammerhuber.at
07.11.2022 show complete article