The Spectacular Winners of W. Eugene Smith’s $72,500 Photography Grants

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The Spectacular Winners of W. Eugene Smith’s ,500 Photography Grants

CABIMAS, VENEZUELA – NOVEMBER 24, 2019: Yon Medina dives from an abandoned oil structure in lake Maracaibo, covered in algae blooms.

Lake Maracaibo is covered by a layer of algae that flourishes because of mineral contamination, caused by a constant flow of oil spills. Adriana Loureiro Fernandez

The W. Eugene Smith Fund has announced the recipients of its 2024 grants, including the W. Eugene Smith grant, Smith Student grant, and Howard Chapnick grant. Combined, the Fund is issuing $72,500 in grants this year — the most in any grant cycle in 45 years.

This year’s grants received more than 725 entries from more than 85 countries, which is the most in any year since the Fund was established in 1979. Additionally, the Fund says the quality of the entries was phenomenal, resulting in the judges for the Smith Student grant being unable to unanimously select two recipients as they were instructed to. Instead, they selected three, with each receiving a $5,000 grant.

“It was difficult to judge the entries because they were of such high quality and importance,” Hideko Kataoka, Director of Photography at Newsweek in Japan and one of three judges of this year’s Smith Grant entries, says.

“We were struck by the tireless efforts of photographers who are using photography as a weapon to fight against all kinds of social issues, to uncover their essence, and to connect them to tomorrow.”

The judging panel also included Arem Duplessis, Group Creative Director at Apple, and Nii Obodai, Founder of Nuku Studio, which offers support for both emerging and established photographers through research projects, collaborations, partnerships, and other initiatives.

“After 45 years, it is both exciting and humbling to see that the W. Eugene Smith grants continue to attract documentary photographers at all levels from all over the world,” Scott Thode, president of the W. Eugene Smith Fund, says noting that entries were received from more than 85 countries.

The $30,000 W. Eugene Smith Grant in Humanistic Photography Winner

Adriana Loureiro Fernández from Venezuela is the recipient of this year’s $30,000 W. Eugene Smith Grant in Humanistic Photography for her project, Paradise Lost, which Fernández says is a tribute to her generation’s search for change. The Fund explains that Paradise Lost encapsulates several stories happening at once, amounting to “an untenable situation framed by both tragedy and splendor.”

A group of people sit at a table playing a board game outdoors at night. In the background, a large fire lights up the sky, silhouetting palm trees. The scene is dark, with a sense of urgency and tension from the fire. — PUNTA DE MATA, VENEZUELA – NOVEMBER 5, 2022: Under a sky lit by gas flares, Jalismar Villaruel, plays animal lottery with her neighbors and two children, Camelia and Thiago Fuentes.

Punta de Mata is the brightest point in Venezuela, surpassing even the capital’s brightness. Massive gas flares burn continuously.

Adriana Loureiro Fernandez for *The New York Times*

A person stands at night amidst burning barricades on a street. They wear a flag as a cloak and cover their face with a cloth. Smoke fills the air, creating a tense atmosphere. — SAN CRISTOBAL, VENEZUELA – FEBRUARY 28, 2015: A demonstrator stands in front of a barricade, protecting the entrance of the Los Andes University during nation-wide protests that lasted over three months. The protests left a death toll that exceeded 40 people and hundreds of political prisoners. Adriana Loureiro Fernandez

Armed soldiers in camouflage uniforms and masks aim rifles down a narrow alleyway between brick and concrete walls, where a man stands with his hands up. Another soldier is visible further down the alley. A mountain is in the background. — PETARE, VENEZUELA – APRIL 22, 2021: Heavily armed police forces do a stop-and-frisk in Jose Feliz Ribas neighborhood in Petare. The area is controlled by an armed group known as Wuilexis.

According to the OHCHR, police and other security forces killed more than 19,000 people between 2016 and 2019. Many of these killings were consistent with previous patterns of extrajudicial executions, the report said. Adriana Loureiro Fernandez

Two people embrace tightly on a dirt road. One wears a headscarf with a pink pattern, and the other has a light-colored garment. The background features dry, sparse vegetation under a clear sky. — YAURUNA, VENEZUELA – MARCH 18, 2021: Magaly Lozano hugs her cousin Florinda Baez. It was the first time the women reunited since both fled the region in 2018, displaced by the armed group known as La Zona. Adriana Loureiro Fernandez

Two people are asleep on a bus, with the person on the left resting their head on the other's shoulder. The bus is filled with passengers, and bright sunlight streams through orange curtains, casting a warm glow on the scene. — TACNA, PERU. JULY 5, 2017: Kely Vicuña (18) and Darwin Contreras (19) sleep on their eighth bus, as they head to Peru’s border with Chile.

The couple are asylum seekers who escaped Venezuela after being political prisoners in 2017. Venezuelans now top every Latin American list for asylum requests. Adriana Loureiro Fernandez

A person sits cross-legged on a worn mattress in a dimly lit room with peeling green walls. Sunlight filters through a partially open window on the left, where a hand is visible, casting light on the person's face. — MARACAIBO, VENEZUELA. AUGUST 2, 2019: Saida Bravo, 45, who suffers from acute malnutrition feels the sunlight in her face. Ms Bravo is not able to walk due to her weakened body —she only enjoys sunlight when her daughter opens the window for her. Adriana Loureiro Fernandez

A family sits in a dimly lit room. A woman lifts a baby while another child stands nearby. Two women are seated on a couch; one is breastfeeding another baby. The room is decorated with photos and assorted items. — CARACAS, VENEZUELA. SEPTEMBER 14, 2019: In a house made of plastic sheets, Grilis Febres (center), 19, holds her youngest daughter. While her mother (bottom right) and sister-in-law (left) hold their newborn children in their home in Petare.

In Venezuela, contraception shortages began in 2013. According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Venezuela has one of the highest teenage pregnancy rates in the world. Every 3 minutes, there is a birth from a teenage girl. Adriana Loureiro Fernandez

“Eugene Smith’s legacy carries so much of what I cherish in our photographic practice, and I am honored to bring awareness to stories from Venezuela, in a time when democratic values are challenged around the world,” Adriana Loureiro Fernández says. “I hope these stories can shed light on what is at stake —how it feels to live through a shattered democracy. Most importantly, I hope to honor and highlight how the human spirit and its resilience carries through it all, and hope others can find warmth in restless times.”

The $10,000 W. Eugene Smith Grant in Humanistic Photography Finalists

Deanne Fitzmaurice from the United States received a $10,000 Finalist grant for her series The Unlikely Journey, which is the story of Iraqi refugee Saleh Khalaf, who was severely injured by a roadside bomb in 2003 as the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq began. This project has been in active development for over 20 years as Fitzmaurice has been documenting Khalaf’s life and the life of his family in the United States after being granted asylum.

A close-up black and white image of a person looking upwards. An outstretched hand rests on their forehead. The lighting highlights the intense gaze of the eye. — On Oct. 10, 2003, as he walked home from school, a 9-year-old Iraqi boy named Saleh Khalaf picked up something on the roadside that looked to him like a toy ball. Seconds later it exploded ripping open his abdomen, tearing off his hands, blowing out his left eye, and mortally wounding his older brother. Days afterward, Saleh’s father, Raheem, persuaded doctors at a U.S. Air Force base to perform emergency surgery to keep his son alive. It marked the beginning of an international mercy mission to save the boy whose indomitable spirit earned him the nickname Lion Heart. Deanne Fitzmaurice / *SF Chronicle*

A man sits on a chair in a medical office, looking to the side. Another person, facing away, works at a computer. Prosthetic limbs are laid out on a nearby examination table. The room is lit with natural light. — Salah gets evaluated for prosthesis at University of California San Francisco. Deanne Fitzmaurice

A black and white image of a person with bandaged hands drawing in a notebook with a pen. They are sitting at a table, deeply focused on their art, with various drawing tools and papers scattered around. — Though usually upbeat, Saleh was sensitive about his appearance. One evening when he saw other children staring at him, Saleh became angry and upset. Nurses sought to soothe him by taping a felt tip pen to his arm so he could draw pictures. Saleh drew an airplane dropping bombs.
Deanne Fitzmaurice / *SF Chronicle*

A black and white image shows a man lying in a hospital bed with a young boy resting against him. The boy has a wrapped arm and visible marks on his skin. A stuffed tiger toy is placed beside them. — Raheem would Saleh comfort Saleh in his hospital bed until he fell asleep. Raheem lost his oldest son, Dia, in the explosion that maimed Saleh and did not have the heart to tell Saleh his older brother had died in the explosion. Deanne Fitzmaurice / *The Chronicle*

Two people exit a building through automatic doors. The woman on the left, wearing a headscarf and patterned pants, smiles while holding a drink. The man on the right, in shorts, carries a bag and looks back over his shoulder. Sunlight streams in. — Saleh jokingly tries to block his new wife, Fatima from the entrance to Laney College as they both register to take classes. Deanne Fitzmaurice

Two boys stand on a quiet street, one examining a pole, while the other watches. Nearby on the ground, a doll's arm protrudes from a concrete block. The scene is surrounded by trees and houses. — Saleh tries to play basketball with his new prosthesis but finds it easier to play without it and sets it aside. Deanne Fitzmaurice

A person with a limb difference plays basketball outdoors, focusing on the ball as they throw it upwards. The image is in black and white, capturing movement and determination. — Saleh loves the game of basketball and does his best to shoot baskets and dribble. He tries to wear his prosthesis but finds it uncomfortable and manages to get by without it. Deanne Fitzmaurice

“I am deeply honored and grateful to receive this W. Eugene Smith grant to continue my 20-year project about a boy severely injured in the US-led invasion of Iraq and the long-term effects of war on maimed civilians,” Fitzmaurice says. “This recognition is exceptionally meaningful as my photography has long been inspired by the powerful work of W. Eugene Smith and his deep compassion for humanity.”

A second finalist, Murat Yazar from Turkey, also received a $10,000 grant for his work, Shadows of Kurdistan, which explores the dimensions and depth of Kurdish culture and their political situation since Kurdistan is split among the countries of Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria.

A group of people gathers on and below a large stone bridge. One person is mid-air, jumping off the bridge. The sky is clear and the image is in black and white. People are watching the jumper from different angles. — From an ancient bridge, teenagers leap 16 meters into the Khabur River below. Zakho City, Iraq in 2019. Murat Yazar

A group of people play soccer on a barren, dirt field. One person in the foreground leaps to catch a ball in mid-air, while others stand scattered in the background. The scene is captured in black and white, emphasizing movement and shadow. — Lake Urmia is a saltwater lake in Iran. In recent years, its water level has significantly decreased due to over-irrigation and the impacts of climate change. Winds now carry the lake’s salt onto nearby farmlands, destroying the soil and forcing many villagers to abandon their homes. Iran in 2019. Murat Yazar

A bride in a flowing white gown and veil stands holding a bouquet in an expansive field. A majestic, snow-capped mountain is visible in the background under a clear sky. The scene is captured in black and white. — The bride poses for photos with the view of Mount Ararat before the wedding ceremony. Dogubeyazit City, Turkey in 2020. Murat Yazar

A black dog walking on a snowy landscape, with modern buildings in the distant background under a cloudy sky. — A street dog searches for food in the winter in Ağrı City, Turkey, in 2021. Murat Yazar

A group of people holding burning torches at night. One man in the foreground looks upward, while others stand in the background. Two individuals, one pointing, appear elevated on a hill, surrounded by a cloudy sky, suggesting a gathering or event. — During the Newroz Spring Festival, the men carry torches up the mountain to celebrate the Kurdish New Year. Akre City, Iraq in 2019. Murat Yazar

Children climb and play on the metal structure of an electricity pylon in an open area overlooking a cityscape. The black-and-white image captures the energetic scene against a cloudy sky and distant urban background. — The children from the slums are playing games on the electrical station located at the top of the city. Urfa City, Turkey in 2013. Murat Yazar

A vast flock of birds fills the sky, flying over a rugged landscape with a small building and a mountain in the background. The image is in black and white, underscoring the dynamic motion of the birds against the tranquil scenery. — The ravens are next to Mount Ararat. Igdir City, Turkey in 2020. Murat Yazar

A black and white photo shows several people walking on a snowy ground near small houses with smoke rising from chimneys. The sky is cloudy, and the scene conveys a cold, wintry atmosphere. — In the winter mornings, the villagers from around Kars City in Turkey, gather at the animal market near the city center. They bring their animals to sell, hoping to get a good price in 2022. Murat Yazar

“In the early years of my photographic journey, one of the photographers who had the greatest impact on me was W. Eugene Smith,” Yazar says. “Receiving this award reinforces my belief that I have been on the right path in my photography from the very beginning. This recognition will motivate me to continue my photographic project, Shadows of Kurdistan, with even more dedication. I am deeply grateful to the esteemed jury for deeming me worthy of this honor, and to the W. Eugene Smith Fund for their support.”

W. Eugene Smith Student Grant and Howard Chapnick Grant Winners

In addition to the two major grants above, the Fund also coordinates a Student Grant (with a total pool of $15,000) and the 2024 Howard Chapnick Grant ($7,500). Lea Greub from Germany, Mosfiqur Rahman Johan from Bangladesh, and Gerd Waliszewski (from the United States but is currently based in Germany) were each awarded $5,000 as winners of the Student Grant. Maleza, a photographer-led, not-for-profit association that seeks to facilitate the merging and exchange of experiences around photography in Peru, is this year’s recipient of the 2024 Howard Chapnick Grant.

The winners and their images can be seen on the W. Eugene Smith Grant website.

Image credits: Photographs are individually credited and provided courtesy of the W. Eugene Smith Fund

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