World Press Photo Exhibition opens in Christchurch

World Press Photo Exhibition opens in Christchurch for the first time

July 31, 2014

The World Press Photo Exhibition opens in Christchurch for the first time this weekend.

The exhibition, which runs through to August 22, can be seen on campus at the university’s James Hight building.

The photos include images of war, conflict, natural disasters, crime, stunning wildlife, tranquillity of children, a disturbing pre-execution shot, remarkable sporting moments and even the Team New Zealand yacht battling it out on San Francisco Bay.

Event manager Terri van Schooten says it is a huge privilege to bring the exhibition to Christchurch at last.

``We have largely been able to achieve this through the generosity of the Canterbury Community Trust which has provided a grant and the University of Canterbury through provision of a suitable venue,” van Schooten says.

``The people of Christchurch, more than many New Zealanders, will understand the role the visual media plays in stimulating an urgent response to a critical situation.’’

Now in it its 57th year, the World Press Photo exhibition is the result of a worldwide annual contest in press photography that aims to recognise outstanding visual storytelling. This year the exhibition contains 130 photographs selected from the 90,000 submitted by 5754 photographers across nine categories.

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