An artist with deep roots to Cape Ann designed, built and donated a sculpture for Gloucester’s 400+ to memorialize the generations of immigrants who came to make their living on
Sculpture flags artist’s love of Fishtown
German artist refuses award after his AI image wins prestigious photography prize
There’s some controversy in the photography world as an AI-generated image won a major prize at a prestigious competition, PetaPixel has reported. An piece called The Electrician by Boris Eldagsen took first prize in the Creative category at the World Photography Organization’s Sony World Photography Awards — despite not being taken by a camera. Eldagsen subsequently refused the award, saying “AI is not photography. I applied […] to find out if the competitions are prepared for AI images to enter. They are not.”
Eldagsen’s image is part of a series called PSEUDOMNESIA: Fake Memories, designed to evoke a photographic style of the 1940s. However, they are in reality “fake memories of a past, that never existed, that no one photographed. These images were imagined by language and re-edited more between 20 to 40 times through AI image generators, combining ‘inpainting’, ‘outpainting’, and ‘prompt whispering’ techniques.”
In a blog, Eldagsen explained that he used his experience as a photographer to create the prize-winning image, acting as a director of the process with the AI generators as “co-creators.” Although the work is inspired by photography, he said that the point of the submission is that it is not photography. “Participating in open calls, I want to speed up the process of the Award organizers to become aware of this difference and create separate competitions for AI-generated images,” he said.
Eldagsen subsequently declined the prize. “Thank you for selecting my image and making this a historic moment, as it is the first AI-generated image to win in a prestigious international photography competition,” he wrote. “How many of you knew or suspected that it was AI generated? Something about this doesn’t feel right, does it? AI images and photography should not compete with each other in an award like this. They are different entities. AI is not photography. Therefore I will not accept the award.”
Shortly thereafter, the photo was stripped from the show and competition website and organizers have yet to comment on the matter. Eldagsen actually traveled to London to attend the ceremony and even got up on stage (uninvited) to read a statement in person.
It’s not clear if the organizers knew the work was AI-generated or not (Eldagsen said he told them it was). In any case, rather than shrinking from the situation, they should be embracing it. AI-generated art has entered the culture in a huge way over the past year, with AI winning both photo and art competitions over the past few months. Eldagsen’s piece is bound to create conversations about how to handle it, particularly when it encroaches into traditional mediums.
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Photographer does impromptu photo shoot to lift spirits on broken down Walla Walla
BREMERTON, Wash. — The Walla Walla ferry ran aground Saturday afternoon outside of Bainbridge Island on Rich Passage, stranding over 600 people for hours. During that time, people were coming up with all sorts of things to pass the time until they could board off the ship.
Britt Jazek, a photographer out of Port Orchard, was on her way to a last-minute proposal photo shoot in Seattle went the ship stopped working.
“What could happen on our ferry ride? I have tons of time,” Jazek said.
She says things were concerning at the beginning, but people quickly started to relax and talk to each other to pass the time. She says when she was people-watching, she noticed some people were incredibly dressed. She found out they were supposed to go to a Naval ball in the area, but of course, their plans changed.
“But then there was a bunch of beautiful people dressed to the 9′s, right? Like suit and tie,” Jazek said.
She came up with the idea because she had all of her gear to see if they would like their pictures taken. She had to get permission from the captain before taking pictures.
“I have the gear. I have the time. You deserve to be documented because this is a piece of art,” Jazek said.
She says that was the last place to think of a photo shoot, but she knew she had to do something to cheer people up.
“It was all so comical. It was so much fun and it was so light-hearted and the photos ended up looking great,” Jazek said.
In all, she says she did about 9 free photoshoots on board. But, she believes the photos she took tell the story of how a bunch of strangers came together during a weird and difficult situation.
“And I feel like the situation was less than ideal, but I got to see the best of humanity and I wouldn’t change my experience for the world,” Jazek said.
The Walla Walla remains out of commission and it’s not clear when it will be back up and running.
©2023 Cox Media Group
OPPO Unveils the imagine IF Photography Awards 2023: Beyond the Image, Beyond Imagination
- One of the highest prizes among mobile photography awards
- The awards also offer winners training, and exhibition opportunities
- World renowned photographers including Alec Soth, Tang Hui, Tina Signesdottir Hult, Wang Jianjun, Yin Chao, are among the prestigious judge panel
SHENZHEN,CHINA – Media OutReach – 17 April 2023 – OPPO, a leading global technology company, officially launched the imagine IF Photography Awards 2023, a mobile photography competition that pushes the boundaries of creativity beyond the limits of existing images and expressions.
One of the Highest Prizes in Mobile Photography Awards
The vision of “Beyond the Image, Beyond Imagination” reflects OPPO’s commitment to driving progress through technological innovation and igniting the creativity of users worldwide. OPPO’s professional mobile photography technology is designed to inspire maximum aesthetics and inspiration, empowering non-professional users to create timeless masterpieces.
As a testament to OPPO’s commitment to inspiring mobile photographers, the awards offer one of the highest prizes in the industry. The OPPO imagine IF Master of the Year (Golden Award) includes a prize of CNY160,000, participation in the Hasselblad Image Training Camp, and international photo exhibition opportunities. There are also four Silver Awards (CNY 60,000), ten OPPO Bronze Awards (CNY 20,000) also offering attractive prizes as well as opportunities for training and exposure.
Additionally, there are four Honorable Mentions in each of the eight categories as well as Partner Channel Awards and Monthly Activity Awards to include more inspiring works.
Prestigious Global Judges
OPPO has assembled a prestigious panel of judges composed of world-renowned photographers who bring diverse perspectives and extensive experience to the competition.
Among the distinguished judges is Alec Soth, one of the most famous contemporary photographic artists and a member of Magnum Photos. Pete Lau, Senior Vice President, and Chief Product Officer of OPPO, adds his valuable insights to the panel. Tang Hui, a top Chinese portrait photographer, and Hasselblad Master, brings his wealth of experience to the judging process. Tina Signesdottir Hult, an internationally recognized art photographer and Hasselblad Master, also graces the panel with her discerning eye. Wang Jianjun, a top landscape photographer and member of the Chinese Photographers Association, lends his expertise to the competition. Yin Chao, a top Chinese fashion photographer, and Hasselblad ambassador brings his expertise to the judging process.
Eight Categories to Explore Artistic Expressions
The competition features eight different entry categories, including The Distant View, Portrait, Night Scenery, Colors, Landscape, The Taste of Memories, Light & Shadow, and Chapters of a Life, aimed at inspiring creativity among OPPO users worldwide.
Submissions for the OPPO Imagine IF Photography Awards 2023 are open until 24:00 GMT on July 25, 2023 and can be made through OPPO Imagine IF official website, or partner channels-500px.
For more information, please visit the official OPPO Imagine IF Photography Awards website at https://imagine-if.oppo.com/en/
Hashtag: #OPPO
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About OPPO
OPPO is a leading global smart device brand. Since the launch of its first mobile phone – “Smiley Face” – in 2008, OPPO has been relentless in its pursuit of the perfect synergy between aesthetic satisfaction and innovative technology. Today, OPPO provides a wide range of smart devices spearheaded by the Find and Reno series. Beyond devices, OPPO also provides its users with the ColorOS operating system and internet services such as OPPO Cloud and OPPO+. OPPO has footprints in more than 60 countries and regions, with more than 40,000 employees dedicated to creating a better life for customers around the world.
Expert in gardening and photography to speak to Bella Vista Photography Club on Thursday
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BELLA VISTA — Rick Tramposh will be sharing his expertise on gardening and photography Thursday at the meeting of the Bella Vista Photography Club.
The topic of Tramposh’s presentation is how and what people can plant to attract birds, butterflies and bees to their gardens, creating opportunities for close-up and macro-photography.
Tramposh was a Master Gardener with the Kansas State University Extension in Johnson County, Mo., a suburb of Kansas City, for 17 years. During that time he was on the Speaker’s Bureau, where he spoke and taught in a variety of venues about landscaping, soils, bulbs, annuals, perennials and other horticultural topics. All of that was in addition to helping build landscaping and gardens in the community with other Master Gardener volunteers.Seven years ago Tramposh retired to Bella Vista. He has been a member of the Bella Vista Garden Club and is also a board member of the Bella Vista Photography Club.
The photography club meets from 6:30-8 p.m. the third Thursday of the month at First Community Bank located at 1196 U.S. 71 in Pineville, Mo. Meetings are free and open to the public.
Nelson Mandela Bay artist cooks up novel technique
Using everyday kitchen essentials such as lemon juice, a bar of Sunlight soap and Pepsi-Cola, local artist Jessica Staple discovered a ground-breaking technique in her printmaking process.
This artist’s vision is to celebrate Utah wildlife through murals
Chris Peterson is an artist with a vision. In his mind’s eye, he sees walls in every county in the state covered with murals he’s painted of Utah wildlife. A black bear here, a Bonneville cutthroat trout there, a Rocky Mountain elk over there.
He’s already made a prototype. You can see it on the side of the Neighborhood Hive building located just west of the intersection of 2100 South and 2100 East in Sugarhouse.
There, in vibrant colors, stands what has to rank as the largest cutthroat trout ever painted.
It’s this 120-foot long mural that gave flight to Chris’ lofty idea to adorn the side of a building in every Utah county with a similar rendering of a species that is prized by the locals.
Chris, as you might have guessed, is a lover of wildlife, and of Utah wildlife in particular. A native Utahn who grew up at the mouth of Provo Canyon, he’s been a fan ever since his first cast in the Provo River.
As an artist — he was trained at BYU and the Kansas City Art Institute — he can choose to paint any number of subjects, but it’s wildlife he’s drawn to, and wildlife he champions.
It’s his view that the animals in our midst — non-human category — deserve all the attention they can get.
Artist Chris Peterson stands near one of his murals at the Neighborhood Hive in Sugar House on Tuesday, April 4, 2023. Peterson is overseeing an art contest for the Utah Wildlife Federation.
Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News
To that end, Chris enlisted the support of noted Utah wildlife guru Brett Prettyman, author of “Fishing Utah” and chairman of the board of the nonprofit Utah Wildlife Federation, to create an advocacy campaign called Celebrate Utah Wildlife.
They created a website — celebrateutahwildlife.org — that spells out their goals, hopes and dreams, and to kick things off they’re hosting a Celebrate Utah Wildlife contest with $10,500 in prizes.
The contest, which runs through May 10, is open to age groups 4-11, 12-17 and 18-plus. There are seven categories, including photography, handmade art, video, music, writing, digital art and digital storytelling.
First prize in each category is $250, second prize is $150 and third prize $100.
In addition to the Utah Wildlife Federation, dozens of animal-supportive organizations are helping sponsor the contest, including such disparate groups as the Utah STEM Action Center, the Hansen Sisters Foundation, the Utah Department of Natural Resources, Wasatch Front Scouting and the Utah Division of Arts and Museums.
The contest’s purpose, besides increasing the bank account of the winning artists, is to serve as a promotional kickoff for Chris’ 29-murals-in-29-counties project, also known as Wildlife Walls.
The plan is for the winning entries in each category to become part of a visual show and storytelling exhibit that will travel the state to be part of the unveiling of each Wildlife Wall.
Painted fish in Sugar House on Tuesday, April 4, 2023, for an exhibit.
Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News
If this all sounds ambitious, Chris will be the first to agree with you. There is plenty of work to be done, including A) Finding the walls in each county and securing the rights to paint them, B) Selecting what animal species the locals would most like painted and C) securing the financing.
But the ball is rolling. Already, for example, Chris reports that negotiations are underway in Uintah County to paint a mural on a wall in the center of Vernal of a Colorado River cutthroat trout, a fish Chris said the Division of Wildlife Resources — one of the donors to the cause — is planning to re-introduce in the northeast part of the state.
If all goes according to plan, Chris and his crew — he plans to utilize local artists to assist him whenever possible — will be on site in Vernal this August, finishing their mural to coincide with the annual Dinah Soar Days Hot Air Balloon Festival.
Chris admits his concern for the future of wildlife in Utah is driving his advocacy. “I recognize a decline in diversity and a decline in habitat and some attitudes around wildlife that I feel aren’t totally sustainable,” he says.
“But at the same time, I choose to be positive, I choose to be present, and to celebrate the opportunity that we have to be alive at the same time and in the same vicinity as these amazing creatures. That’s the message I’d like to spread.”
At a rate of six to eight murals per year, Chris estimates his Wildlife Walls project will conclude with the 29th county sometime in late 2026.
That gives him four years to traipse the state and act out the part of a wildlife evangelical, a Van Gogh of the high plans.
And after the counties are all finished, what then? According to the Celebrate Utah Wildlife website, there are more than 600 different species of fish, birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians within the confines of the Beehive State.
More than enough to keep a painter busy for a good long time.
Artist Chris Peterson looks over small cutthroat trout in an aquarium at the Neighborhood Hive in Sugar House on Tuesday, April 4, 2023. Peterson is overseeing an art contest for the Utah Wildlife Federation.
Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News
Brett recreates photographs from the past to record how WA’s Goldfields has changed
Brett Leigh Dicks shuffles his feet and tripod slightly to find the exact spot where another photographer stood 100 years earlier.
“I guess I’m somewhat of an archaeologist who uses photography,” he jokes. “It’s just a lot less digging.”
Metaphorically, it’s the same amount of digging, just a different kind.
Mr Dicks, a Fremantle-based photographer, is artist in residence at WA’s Museum of the Goldfields.
He is recreating photographs taken between the 1890s and the 1920s by two photographers, John Joseph Dwyer and Thomas Faulkner Mackay, who had a studio on Kalgoorlie’s main street.
On the Goldfields’ dusty streets, he looks for four-walled relics.
Some of the buildings portrayed in the Dwyer-Mackay collection are easy finds, federation-style landmarks that shape the cityscape, like the York Hotel, a St Mark’s Basilica of the outback.
But locating anonymous houses requires some digging, using tools as old as telephone records from the 20s and 30s, or as modern as Google Earth.
“I knew my way around Kalgoorlie before I even got here,” Mr Dicks says, recalling the long strolls he took along the town’s virtual streets.
He looks for distinguishing elements, details that can help identification, following clues that survived time.
Even reflections in the windows of buildings opposite the road are markers.
In their footsteps
It’s a grey afternoon in the Goldfields. The light, filtered through the clouds, is soft on the rounded façade of the Palace Theatre.
It’s the light Mr Dicks needs to recreate Mackay’s picture.
He scribbled in his notebook it was taken on an overcast afternoon, as he wants the new pictures to be shot under the same conditions of the original ones: same angle, perspective and lighting conditions.
Sometimes that means rolling a wheelie bin out of frame, waiting for an orange car to zoom past or reschedule the shooting because you find the site cordoned off by forensic detectives.
Mr Dicks says photography is subjective, a personal view of an objective reality.
“Ten people can stand in front of a building and see it 10 different ways,” he says.
But this project puts the photographer, quite literally, in someone else’s footsteps.
Delegating every choice — from framing to timing — to Dwyer and Mackay gives him insight into their work.
“One of the things that’s really come to light is that John Joseph Dwyer wasn’t a morning person,” Mr Dicks laughs.
A reflection of the past
This comparative study reveals more than the preferences of a photographer who lived at the turn of the last century. It illustrates how society evolved.
Mr Dicks’s lens is magnifying — exposing by contrast — the changes that shaped architecture and lives.
“Towns and cities will change given the needs of society,” he says.
It is apparent in the disappearance of laundries, draperies, and tailors, replaced by today’s big-box stores.
Mr Dicks says these changes are enlightening, but he can’t help getting a little romantic looking at those old pictures and lamenting what has been lost.
He is struck by the absence of large areas for social gathering in his pictures. They have vanished, or been turned into museum pieces.
“There are a lot of social holes in the photographs,” Mr Dicks says.
“We seem to have lost that, social interaction has gone online.”
He believes these old and new photos, put side by side, give a few hints for the future.
But the Australian-American photographer also thinks his work should make the community feel proud that many of the buildings photographed in the early 1900s are still standing, and well preserved.
“In America, the downtown is decaying, forgotten. The centre of town moved to the outskirts, in box stores,” Mr Dicks says.
Overseas, he got used to the occasional door being shut on his face, but, in the Goldfields, he found them all open.
Continuing conversations
The public’s interest in the project inspired Mr Dicks to involve the community. He asked people to respond with poems to selected portraits.
He wants others to continue the dialogue he started with Dwyer and Mackay, now, and in the future.
“I hope this project becomes a continuing conversation,” Mr Dicks says.
He likes to picture someone else, in 100 years from now, standing in his footsteps, chasing the same angle and the same light of this grey afternoon.
Publicis Groupe Hong Kong leads Asia at Shortlist stage of New York Festivals 2023 Health Awards
New York Festivals Health Awards has announced the 2023 shortlist. From Asia, Publicis Groupe Hong Kong has led the shortlist stage with six shortlists for their AXA “Art Care” outdoor campaign.
Also scoring shortlists are; Ogilvy India (2), McCann Worldgroup Singapore (1), Ogilvy Thailand (1) and Roberto Jun Nakashima / WPP / VMLY&R (1)
The international New York Festivals Health Awards honors the world’s best healthcare advertising and celebrates creative achievement within the healthcare advertising, marketing, and communication space beyond the barriers of language and culture.
“NYF Health is proud to Shortlist this year’s impressive creative work in healthcare, wellness, and pharmaceutical emanating from some of the world’s most prominent agencies,” said Scott Rose, President, New York Festivals Advertising Competitions. “The caliber of this year’s work was exceptionally forward-thinking and impactful. Leading edge entries from around the globe demonstrated innovation and truly impressed the NYF Health Awards Grand Jury.”
This year’s Shortlist was thoughtfully determined by the NYF Health Awards Grand Jury from Healthcare, Wellness and Pharma entries submitted from 29 countries around the globe.
2023’s Grand Jury panel selected 264 entries to advance to the trophy round. All Shortlisted entries progress to live judging rounds to determine award rank determined by the 2023 NYF Health Awards Executive Jury populated with award-winning industry experts and thought leaders. NYF Health Awards Executive Jury is led by 2023 Executive Jury President, Adam Hessel, CCO for Ogilvy Health.
Entrants advancing to the next round utilized a wide spectrum of strategies to create engagement and deliver creative result driven work for prominent brands. Agencies employed activations, experiences and events, influencers, social video, Out-of-Home, digital marketing, technology-based engagement, branded entertainment, integrated campaigns, altered reality, animation, and visual effects to position brands, engage consumers and health care professionals, and achieve market growth.
For 2023, US Agencies led the Shortlist this year with 164 entries advancing to the next round, agencies from the United Kingdom saw 25 entries move on to the next round. In addition, Germany advanced with 15 entries and Canada with 14 entries.
A global view of entries achieving Shortlist status include Spain advancing with 7 entries, Hong Kong with 6, Brazil with 5, and both Australia and Colombia saw 3 entries Shortlisted. Agencies from India, The Netherlands, and Poland each saw 2 entries move to the next round. Argentina, Denmark, Honduras, Japan, Kenya, Pakistan, Singapore, and Thailand each had a single-entry advance.
The NYF Health Awards will celebrate creative work with the following new award. The New York City Award will honor advertising that captures the cutting-edge vibe of New York City.
For more information on the 2023 NYF Health competition click here. View the NYF Health Awards 2023 Shortlist here.
Shortlisted Entries from Asia:
Art Care – Publicis Groupe Hong Kong – AXA – OUT OF HOME: HWC-OOH1 – Ambient – HONG KONG
Art Care – Publicis Groupe Hong Kong – AXA – OUT OF HOME: HWC-OOH2 – Billboard – HONG KONG
Art Care – Publicis Groupe Hong Kong – AXA – ACTIVATIONS/EVENTS/LIVE EXPERIENCES: HWD-AE – ACTIVATIONS/EVENTS/LIVE EXPERIENCES – HONG KONG
Art Care – Publicis Groupe Hong Kong – AXA – OUT OF HOME: HWD-OOH1 – Ambient – HONG KONG
Art Care – Publicis Groupe Hong Kong – AXA – OUT OF HOME: HWD-OOH2 – Billboard – HONG KONG
Art Care – Publicis Groupe Hong Kong – AXA – ACTIVATIONS/EVENTS/LIVE EXPERIENCES: HWC-AE – ACTIVATIONS/EVENTS/LIVE EXPERIENCES – HONG KONG
Savlon – The Artist – Ogilvy India – Savlon Swasth India – FILM TECHNIQUE | CRAFT: HWC-FTC3 – Direction – INDIA
Memory Karaoke – Ogilvy India – MTV & ARDSI – AUDIO TECHNIQUE | CRAFT: HWC-ATC2 – Music – INDIA
Missing Limb – Roberto Jun Nakashima, WPP, VMLY&R – The Support Groups for Eating Disorders and Anxiety – DESIGN | CRAFT: HWC-DC7 – Posters – JAPAN
StressWaves – McCann Worldgroup Singapore – Cigna – DIGITAL/MOBILE: HWD-DM8 – Other – SINGAPORE
LOVE YOUR GUT – Ogilvy Thailand – Dutch Mill Company Limited – FILM: HWF-FM2 – Commercials – THAILAND
Victoria native Ivana Ilic shows off her star power as Samsung’s UNDSCVRD Season 2 winner
Samsung Electronics Australia has crowned vocal powerhouse Ivana Ilic as the winner of its TikTok-based music reality show, UNDSCVRD. The second season wrapped last night, with the final episode now available on the official @UNDSCVRD_artist page on TikTok.
Throughout the four-week, documentary-style showcase, five budding artists worked together with industry heavyweights like global R&B artist Tkay Maidza, platinum producer James Angus, and multi-platinum songwriter Brooke Toia, to develop their music and brand identity, culminating in the creation of a personal music track and accompanying music video filmed completely on Samsung’s Galaxy S23 Ultra.
In the electrifying season finale, the aspiring professional musicians performed their hit singles in front of a live audience and a panel of music and media industry experts.
The UNDSCVRD winner selection process factored in all elements from the one-month competition, including song writing capability, professionalism in the studio, working with others, musicality and performance style. In the end, Ivana wowed the judges with her powerful vocals, heartfelt lyrics, and captivating stage presence.
“I’m so grateful to have had this opportunity to learn from such passionate and talented people within the industry and to be able to share my music with so many people,” Ivana Ilic said of her experience.
“With Samsung’s support and guidance from all the mentors, I feel like I’m coming out of UNDSCVRD as a singer-songwriter ready for the next chapter of my journey.”
As the winner of UNDSCVRD Season 2, the 19-year-old Melbourne native will receive the opportunity to create a 5 track EP featuring “Better Love”, her emotive debut single and music video, along with four new singles, for a total prize value of $100K. Ilic will retain full control of the resulting EP and its future success, giving her the means to kickstart her music career. She will also be supported by artist management and label services from Call & Response in the form of distribution, artist management and promotion of her EP.
Each of the UNDSCVRD contestants will maintain full ownership of their music masters and production content, serving as a launchpad to jumpstart their professional music careers.
In the next week, further content will be dropping on the official @UNDSCVRD_artist page on TikTok, showcasing the contestants’ journeys on the show as well as a cut down of their music videos. Each artist’s single will be available to stream on music streaming platforms from Friday 21 April.
Since its launch in October 2021, the UNDSCVRD series has cultivated a loyal fan base, amassing more than 64 million views and 1.3 million likes, shares and comments.
“We’re humbled by the impact of our UNDSCVRD series on local musicians – it truly demonstrates the good that can come out of merging creativity and technology, helping young Australians transform their sound and providing a platform to amplify their voice,” said Samsung Australia’s Garry McGregor, Vice President, Mobile Experience Division.
“Samsung is all about pushing the boundaries of what’s possible, in our technology and ourselves. We can’t wait to see what else Ivana does with this unique opportunity.”
UNDSCVRD was developed in partnership with Australian production and talent agency, Amplify for Samsung.
For more information on UNDSCVRD or to rewatch the series, visit the official @UNDSCVRD_artist page on TikTok. To follow Ivana’s musical journey, visit @IvanaIlic82.
NOTES TO EDITOR:
The UNDSCVRD Season 2 contestants and their soon to be released singles are as follows:
