Winners Announced for 2015 Paris Photo-Aperture Foundation PhotoBook Awards

4 minute read

The 2015 Paris Photo-Aperture Foundation PhotoBook Awards winners were announced in Paris, with Daniel Mayrit receiving the $10,000 top prize for First PhotoBook. Other winners included Diane Dufour and Xavier Barral, Thomas Mailaender and Will Steacy.

Launched in 2012, the international photography contest celebrates “the book’s contribution to the evolving narrative of photography,” according to their website.

Daniel Mayrit’s You Haven’t Seen Their Faces explores the restrictions of digital imagery in light of the 2011 London Riots, after which Metropolitan Police delivered leaflets with photographs of youngsters who were presumed guilty of taking part in the events on little grounds. Through photos that resemble security images of political powerhouses—from London Mayor Boris Johnson to Aberdeen Asset Management CEO Martin Gilbert—Mayrit reminds us that the photo doesn’t always tell all. “We could not possibly know if the youngsters portrayed by the police were actually criminals,” he says on his website. “We cannot assume either that the individuals here featured are all involved in the ongoing financial scandals….but aren’t they?”

One of the jury members, Fraenkel Gallery president Frish Brandt says surveillance is part of the ongoing conversation regarding the ubiquity of the camera today. “There is a compelling tension in this project that causes one to page through the book with increasing questions and diminishing answers.”

Diane Dufour and Xavier Barral’s Images of Conviction: The Construction of Visual Evidence looks at how the photography has served as evidence of a crime for more than 150 years. The book examines 11 cases, from the famous Shroud of Turin images to the Nuremberg trial evidence to cell phone shots of drone strikes in Afghanistan. The book was selected for this year’s Photography Catalogue of the Year for “its autonomy in relation to the exhibition,” says jury member Christophe Boutin, co-founder of onestar press. “This book is an instant classic—well-done, with outstanding material.”

PhotoBook of the Year was awarded to Thomas Mailaender’s Illustrated People for photographing 23 models while projecting a UV lamp over them followed by a shot of each model before the image disappeared in the sun, revealing a fleeting image on the skin’s surface. Combined with photographic documents from the AMC’s collection, the book offers a stunning perspective on the human form through the combination of art and photography.

Will Steacy’s Deadline delves into the challenges and realities faced by the newspaper industry today, through a close examination of the newsroom and printing plant of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “Without the human investment to provide news content it becomes a zero sum game on the information highway to nowhere,” he says on his website. “The fibers of the paper and the clicks of the mouse are worthless unless the words they are presented on have value.”

The awards were announced by Paris Photo and the Aperture Foundation. After reviewing thousands of entries, the jury announced in September 35 books selected for the shortlist. This year’s winners were selected by Fraenkel Gallery president Frish Brandt; cofounder of onestar press Christophe Boutin; Centre Pompidou photography curator Clément Chéroux; author and editor Donatien Grau; as well as Enea Righi Collection curator Lorenzo Paini.

The 35 shortlisted books are currently on display at Paris Photo until Nov. 15. they will then tour to Aperture Gallery in New York from Dec. 12 to Feb. 8, and then on to Tokyo and other venues. The work will also be featured in the Fall 2015 issue of The PhotoBook Review and exhibited at Paris Photo.

Rachel Lowry is a writer and contributor for TIME LightBox. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @rachelllowry.

Paul Moakley is the Deputy Director of Photography at TIME and you can follow him on Twitter @paulmoakley.

You Haven’t Seen Their Faces by Daniel Mayrit, published by Riot Books. Winner of the First PhotoBook award. Riot Books
Images of Conviction: The Construction of Visual Evidence by Diane Dufour and Xavier Barral, published by Le Bal/Éditions Xavier Barral. Winner of the Photography Catalogue of the Year category. Le Bal/Éditions Xavier Barral
Illustrated People by Thomas Mailaender, published by Archive of Modern Conflict/RVB Books. Winner of PhotoBook of the Year.Archive of Modern Conflict/RVB Books
Deadline by Will Steacy, published by b.frank books. Special Jurors’ mention for PhotoBook of the Year.b.frank books
LDN EI by Antony Cairns. Short-listed for PhotoBook of the Year.Antony Cairns
Imperial Courts 1993–2015 by Dana Lixenberg, Roma Publications. Short-listed for PhotoBook of the Year.Roma Publications
Good 70s by Mike Mandel, published by J&L Books/D.A.P.. Short-listed for PhotoBook of the Year.J&L Books/D.A.P.
Studio 54 by Tod Papageorge, published by Walther König. Short-listed for PhotoBook of the Year.Stanley/Barker
Bottom of the Lake by Christian Patterson, published by Walther König. Short-listed for PhotoBook of the Year.Walther König
Erasure by Fazal Sheikh, published by Steidl. Short-listed for PhotoBook of the Year.Steidl
Negatives by Xu Yong published by New Century Press. Short-listed for PhotoBook of the Year. New Century Press
Taratine by Daisuke Yokota, published by Session Press. Short-listed for PhotoBook of the Year. Session Press
Beastly/Tierisch by Duncan Forbes, Matthias Gabi, and Daniela Janser, published by Spector Books/Fotomuseum Winterthur. Shortlisted for Photography Catalogue of the Year category. Spector Books/Fotomuseum Winterthur
A Guide for the Protection of the Public in Peacetime by Timothy Prus, Ed Jones, and David Alan Mellor, published by Archive of Modern Conflict. Shortlisted for Photography Catalogue of the Year category. Archive of Modern Conflict
TR Ericsson: Crackle & Drag by TR Ericsson, Arnaud Gerspacher, and Barbara Tannenbaum, published by Yale University Press/Cleveland Museum of Art. Shortlisted for Photography Catalogue of the Year category. Yale University Press/Cleveland Museum of Art
William Eggleston: A Cor Americana by Thyago Noguiera, published by Instituto Moreira Salles. Shortlisted for Photography Catalogue of the Year category. Instituto Moreira Salles
(in matters of) Karl by Annette Behrens, published by Fw:Books. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook.Fw:Books
Hush: Israel Palestine 2000–2014 by Noa Ben-Shalom, published by Sternthal Books. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook.Sternthal Books
Walk This Way by Sophie Bramly, published by Galerie 213. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Galerie 213
b>Ser Sangre by Iñaki Domingo, published by RM Verlag/La Kursala/Here Press. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook.RM Verlag/La Kursala/Here Press
Landmark by J. W. Fisher and J. T. Leonard, published by Daylight. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Daylight
Fire in Cairo by Matthew Connors, published by SPBH Editions. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. SPBH Editions
Ramps, Pools, Ponds and Pipes by Dominic Forde, self-published. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Dominic Forde
Hold the Line by Siegfried Hansen, published by Verlag Kettler. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Verlag Kettler
Transmission by Lucy Helton, published by Silas Finch. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Silas Finch
A Geological Index of the Landscape by Benoît Jeannet, Self-published. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Benoît Jeannet
Paper Planes by Sjoerd Knibbeler, published by Fw:Books. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Fw:Books
5 PTOHOGRAHPIES—40 x 28 CM by Madeleine Kotte and Cornelius de Bill Baboul, published by The Ptohograhpies. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. The Ptohograhpies
Anna Konda by Katarzyna Mazur, published by dienacht Publishing. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. dienacht Publishing
Jean-Jaurès by Gilles Raynaldy, published by Purpose Éditions. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Purpose Éditions
Greetings from Auschwitz by Paweł Szypulski, published by Edition Patrick Frey/Foundation for Visual Arts. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Edition Patrick Frey/Foundation for Visual Arts
Mass by Hiroshi Takizawa, published by Newfave. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Newfave
Now Will Not Be With Us Forever by Maurice van Es, published by RVB Books. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. RVB Books
My Lens, Our Ferguson by Adrian Octavius Walker, self-published. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Adrian Octavius Walker
Brick Yard by Akihito Yoshida, self-published. Short-listed title for First PhotoBook. Akihito Yoshida

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