Iceland review - 2017, Síða 66

The winners of
Iceland’s Press
Photographs of the
Year reflect last year’s
events and issues of
importance—both
joyous and sad.
PHOTOS BY HEIÐA HELGADÓTTIR,
KRISTINN MAGNÚSSON, RUT SIGURÐARDÓTTIR
AND VILHELM GUNNARSSON.
We must remember the
might of the photo,” stat-
ed Icelandic President
Guðni Th. Jóhannesson on March 4
as he opened the Press Photographs
of the Year exhibition at Reykjavík
City Hall. Awards were given in seven
categories: for news, sport, landscape,
magazine, daily life, photo series, and
photograph of the year. Four recipi-
ents took home the seven prizes, with
Heiða Helgadóttir receiving three
(she won two last year) and Vilhelm
Gunnarsson two. The winning pho-
tos depict asylum seekers, star ath-
letes, aching feet, body image, eerie
landscape, and a classical portrait.
PHOTOGRAPH OF
THE YEAR
BY HEIÐA HELGADÓTTIR.
FROM THE JURY:
“The image mediates powerful emo-
tions and an atmosphere which
evokes a sense of both solidarity and
fear … The photo carefully depicts
the condition of Icelandic society in
2016 and reminds us that we are
not an isolated island, but rather we
belong to an international communi-
ty inhabited by people with a great
diversity of backgrounds.”
Toshiki Toma, Lutheran minister
for immigrants in Iceland, leads a
moment of prayer for Iranian asylum
seeker Morteza Songolzadeh, who
faces deportation.
64 ICELAND REVIEW