WINNER OF THE ICP / GOST FIRST PHOTO BOOK AWARD ANNOUNCED

The winner of the inaugural ICP / GOST First Photo Book Award is Nancy Floyd for the series ‘Weathering Time.’ The five shortlisted photographers are Ignacio Colo, Ciaran Dunbar, Richard Andrew Sharum, Camillo Pasquarelli and Federico Vespignani. The inaugural Award attracted nearly 300 entrants from 45 countries. Floyd will have her first photo book designed, edited, printed and published by the ICP / GOST imprint, with the opportunity to display the work at the new International Center of Photography space at Essex Crossing in New York City at a date to be announced in 2020. The book is scheduled for publication in Spring 2020. The award aims to promote and support the work of previously unpublished photographers and artists through the production of a first photo book by the ICP / GOST imprint. The judges for the inaugural award were: Peter van Agtmael – Magnum Photographer and Founder and Partner of Red Hook Editions; Genevieve Fussell – Independent Photo Editor; Lucy Helton – Photographer; Mark Lubell – Executive Director of the International Center of Photography, New York; Jamel Shabazz – Photographer; Stuart Smith – Director, GOST Books. The Winner – Nancy Floyd (b 1956 USA) for ‘Weathering Time’ Nancy Floyd has been photographing herself since 1982. If she fails to take a picture on a given day, she advances the film one frame so no image is recorded. Her project includes more than 2,500 photographs. “As time passes, births, deaths, celebrations and bad days happen. Pets come and go, fashions and hairstyles evolve, typewriters, analog clocks and telephones with cords disappear; and film gives way to digital and computer replaces the darkroom. While ‘Weathering Time’ chronicles my youth to the dawn of my old age, the images also reflect the experiences of my generation and underscore the cultural, technological, and physical changes that have occurred over the past thirty-seven years.” – Nancy Floyd www.nancyfloyd.com The Shortlist Ignacio Colo (b. 1980 Argentina) for ‘At the Same Time’ This project centres around Eduardo and Miguel Portney, 51-year-old twins from Buenos Aires, Argentina. They have not been apart since they were born and today, are all alone in the world. They have a mild development delay which makes them more vulnerable but also brings them closer. www.ignaciocolo.com Ciaran Dunbar (b 1982 Ireland) for ‘We Have Stood Together All the Years’ Ciaran was heir to his 23-year-old brother when he died of cancer. As his brother’s heir, he felt the responsibility to keep his memory alive and the process of photographing his belongings and looking through old photographs unlocked memories of places and things. www.ciarandunbar.com Richard Andrew Sharum (b 1978 USA) for ‘Forbidden Poems (Poemas Prohibido)’ In December 2015, Richard began documenting the disappearing farming methods of the Campesinos in rural Cuba, at a time when many young men are leaving for more urban areas. www.richardandrewsharum.com Camillo Pasquarelli (b 1988 Italy) for ‘Monsoons never cross the mountains’ For the past five years, Pasquarelli has been working in the valley of Kashmir, India – the resulting project is a visual journey through the struggle of the Kashmiri people through the eyes of the children, entangled in the current political situation since the beginning of their lives. www.camillopasquarelli.com Federico Vespignani (b 1988 Italy) for ‘Por Aqui Todo Bien’ For this project, Federico shadowed a group of young friends, some of whom were members of the Honduran branch of the 18th Street gang. ‘Por Aqui Todo Bein’ (All Good Around Here) questions the role of fear and the feelings of loss in this group of young men. www.federicovespignani.com I was pleased to participate as a juror for this inaugural award and was so impressed by the strength of the work submitted. Nancy’s decades-long project is fantastic and I look forward to partnering with GOST to publish her book. – ICP Executive Director Mark Lubell We were delighted with the range and breadth of entries for the inaugural award so would like to thank everyone who took the time to enter. Congratulations to all on the shortlist – these projects all have great potential for publication. We are delighted with the winner Nancy Floyd and look forward to beginning discussions on how to realise her conceptually simple, yet engaging and powerful project in book form. – GOST Books Director Stuart Smith Sometimes photography is at its best when it transcends the tiniest sliver of a moment. Yet it can be equally good and valuable at marking the long passage of time. Nancy Floyd’s work is one of the most moving and obsessive documents I’ve seen about a life. It’s simple yet incredibly deep. I think it’s one of those works that I’ll always remember the feeling I had when I first looked at it. –Peter van Agtmael Magnum Photographer and Founder and Partner of Red Hook Editions The award was open to artists of any age, working in the medium of photography whose work has yet to be published in photo book form by a mainstream publisher. For further information on the award please visit www.gostbooks.com/bookaward