From thousands of entries, judges tonight announced Robyn Hay and her photo ‘My Favourite Things’ as the first place winner of the 2020 Trustpower Photographic Exhibition, awarding her $5000 in cash in the fourth year of the region’s largest outdoor photographic exhibition.
This evening’s prizegiving saw the announcement of the top 20 finalists including the top four who share the $10,000 cash prize pool and receive features in The Weekend Sun and UNO. Magazine.
Project Manager Sally Cooke says the judges had a challenging task narrowing down the top 20 images. “Every year we are blown away by the increasing quality of the images we receive. This year was no exception. It makes the judge’s job incredibly difficult.”
This year’s judging panel comprised Carolyn Schofield from Trustpower, Jenny Rudd from UNO. Magazine and Millie Newitt from Downtown Tauranga.
Carolyn says “Judging the Trustpower Photographic Exhibition is always a great way to start the New Year. It’s so exciting to see the variety of ways in which the theme has been interpreted. The winning images all capture intimate moments of people who are completely at home with where they are in that moment, or powerful scenes that connect us with the feeling of home. They all convey a sense of comfort and familiarity.”
This year’s theme of ‘Home’ played an important role in selecting the winning images. Jenny Rudd says this theme was a wonderful thing to be on the lookout for. “Home seems like a fairly abstract idea but when you look at the finalists’ images, there are some commonalities. Regardless of where home is, we all feel the same when we’re there.”
The winning photograph, captured by Robyn Hay, was a standout for the judges. Millie Newitt says “Of all the photos I looked at, I had the strongest emotional connection with this one. It’s such a raw, honest reflection of the theme. The home portrayed in the image reflects a relaxed, well-loved space and that’s what makes it so powerful. Home doesn’t need to be anything fancy; it just needs to be where we feel the most comfortable and connected.”
The 2nd place, 3rd place and Highly Commended Judges Pick images, ‘Sandcastles at Sunset’ by Kerry Hutchison, ‘A.I. Buddy’ by Annabelle Court and ‘Crab Stand-Off’ by Caleb Walsh also received exceptional praise from the judges. “I can feel the peace and utter belonging in the people that are featured in these images” says Jenny. “I would like to particularly commend the Highly Commended Judges Pick winner. These teeny crabs face each other in a stark pearly landscape, out of which looms another larger specimen. I can’t tell if it’s a friendly approach or something more sinister. I wonder what happened next?”
Robyn’s winning large-scale image, sponsored by Priority One, features alongside the 19 other finalists in the Bay’s largest outdoor photo exhibition which opens tonight on The Strand and acts as a showcase of New Zealand’s creative talent. Sally Cooke says the exhibition brings such a buzz to the city centre. “We just love bringing this exhibition to life every year and seeing the excitement on people’s faces as they walk up and down The Strand, admiring the photos.”
This year’s full list of winners is (full name followed by photo caption):
1st Place $5000 – Sponsored by Priority One:
Robyn Hay – ‘My Favourite Things’
2nd Place $3000 – Sponsored by Tauriko Business Estate:
Kerry Hutchison – ‘Sandcastles at Sunset’
3rd Place $1500 – Sponsored by Holland Beckett Lawyers:
Annabelle Court – ‘A.I. Buddy’
Highly Commended Judges Pick $500 – Sponsored by Sharp Tudhope:
Caleb Walsh – ‘Crab Stand-Off’
Highly Commended (in no particular order):
Abhi Chinniah – ‘My Ghagra Choli’
Tania Lewis-Rickard – ‘Home with my Community Whānau’
Kate Regan – ‘Nuts and Bolts’
Brad Crocker – ‘Imagination’
Rose Secker – ‘Arm and Wing’
Klara Langova – ‘Coming Home’
Arka Gupta – ‘Sunset on Lake Hawea’
Clay Dixon – ‘Happy Place’
Lisa Monk – ‘Fondly Familiar’
Juliano Baby Amorim – ‘Happiness is in Front of the House Door’
Harley Couper – ‘The Joy of an Old Salt’
Matt Taylor – ‘Storm in a Bathtub’
Michaela Broodryk – ‘Golden Love’
Ryan Clark – ‘A Classic Kiwi Christmas Sale’
Jessica Handley – ‘Just Chilling at Home’
Roger Smith – ‘Tui in the Cherry Tree’
While you’re enjoying the exhibition, vote for your favourite image to be entered to win dinner for two to the value of $120 at Macau Restaurant. On each photograph, you’ll see a People’s Choice number – simply text CHOICE and the corresponding number of your favourite image to 559.
The exhibition is run as a partnership initiative with Trustpower, Downtown Tauranga, The Weekend Sun, MediaWorks, UNO. Magazine, Tuskany, Priority One, Tauriko Business Estate, Holland Beckett Lawyers and Sharp Tudhope, and with support from The Big Picture and Energy Services. It runs until April 5th on The Strand as a free community event. For more details go to www.downtowntauranga.co.nz
