Choudhary, Berg, And Miller Win 2011 Alexia Foundation Grants
SYRACUSE, NY (February 22, 2011) – Photojournalist Bharat Choudhary is the winner of the 2011 Alexia Foundation Grant for professionals, and Amanda Berg and Bob Miller have tied for first place in the student category, the Alexia Foundation For World Peace And Cultural Understanding announced.
The Alexia Foundation was established by the family of Alexia Tsairis, an honors photojournalism student at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University who was a victim of the terrorist bombing of Pan Am flight #103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, on December 21, 1988. She was returning home for the Christmas holidays after spending a semester at the Syracuse University London Centre.
Alexia, known as a promising photojournalism student, had interned for the Associated Press in New York City and she was deeply committed to world peace, supporting the efforts of Amnesty International and Greenpeace. The annual photography grants to professionals and students are "dedicated to helping photographers produce pictures that promote world peace and cultural understanding."
Choudhary won the professional grant for his project "The Silence Of Others," which documents "the emotional struggle of young Muslims in the face of negative perceptions and religious discriminations in the post 9/11 era." He will receive a $15,000 Alexia Grant toward the completion of his proposed project
Choudhary is a freelance photographer living in London. He received a masters degree in Photojournalism from the University of Missouri in 2010 and worked for the Columbia Missourian. He was awarded a Ford Foundation International Fellowship for his graduate education. He also won first place in the International Picture Story category in the 2009 College Photographer of the Year competition.
There were six finalists in the professional category from the 233 applicants. The other five finalists were GMB Akash, Dominic Bracco II, Jennifer Emerling, Deanne Fitzmaurice, and Aaron Huey.
In the student competition the judges say they were drawn to Berg's proposal on binge drinking problems among female college students, and her portfolio which incl.uded intimate images of binge drinking episodes that proved Berg had achieved access to a group of students who are affected by this issue.
Judges were impressed by Miller's work on Kenyan youth reformers, which judges said contained a great element of hope rather than just documenting the problems alone.
Berg is a senior majoring in photojournalism at Rochester Institute of Technology, and Miller is a graduate student in multimedia, photography, and design at Syracuse University, and he has an undergraduate degree from Stamford University.
In awarding both Miller and Berg first place, no second place was awareded. Both are now entitled to a full tuition scholarship to study photojournalism at Syracuse University in London in the Fall of 2011, plus a $1,000 cash grant each to help produce their projects.
Student Award of Excellence winners were Rebecca Barnett, a senior at Western Kentucky University, Mackenzie Reiss, a senior at Syracuse University, and Brad Vest, a graduate student at Ohio University.
The competition was judged at Syracuse University on February 19, 2011. The judges were Bob Sacha, multimedia producer and instructor; Eliane Laffont, photo industry veteran and Visa Pour L’Image advisor; and Annie Griffiths, National Geographic photographer and founder of Ripple Effect Images.
Complete details of the finalists and judging and the photographers' portfolios are online at the Alexia Foundation Web site.
NPPA Marketplace
- Insure Your Equipment
- You go where the action is….so should your insurance! Hays delivers comprehensive insurance for your gear - covering cameras, computers, editing equipment and rental.
- Join the NPPA
- NPPA members receive a wide range of benefits, from educational opportunities to mentoring, exclusive discounts, insurance options, business tips, and much more.