foam_pressrelease                    Amsterdam, 13 March 2008
Pieter Hugo winner of the KLM Paul Huf Award 2008  

This afternoon the jury of the KLM Paul Huf Award 2008, organised by Foam_Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam chose the portfolio of Pieter Hugo (South Africa, 1976) as the winning one. The KLM Paul Huf Award is a yearly prize for a young international talent up to 35 years old. 

The jury was impressed by the quality and diversity of the submissions made by photographers from all over the world. Among the 78 nominees there were 36 from Europe, 11 from Asia, 5 from South America, 14 from the United States, 9 from Australia and New Zealand, and 3 from Africa. 

The chairman of the Jury, Willis Hartshorn, says:
“The jury for the KLM Paul Huf Award was looking foremost for excellence in the work of the winning photographer. By excellence we meant work that embodied originality, both in approach and style. At the same time we wanted work that was consistent in its level of production. We looked for the ability to create a significant body of work over time.”  

About the work of Pieter Hugo, the winner, Hartshorn notices:
“The work of Pieter Hugo shows a level of creative maturity and strength of vision that is exceptional for a young emerging photographer. His approach to his subjects is direct and confident and he has explored a wide range of social and political issues through portraiture”. 

Pieter Hugo will receive a cash award of € 20,000, a three-week residency in Amsterdam, and an exhibition at Foam in September 2008.

The members of the jury were:
Willis Hartshorn (chairman), director of the International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York
Sunhee Kim, art director at Bund 18 Creative Center in Shanghai
Alessandra Mauro, artistic director of Forma; International Center of Photography in Milan
Guy Tillim, photographer, Cape Town
Wim van Sinderen, chief curator at the Photography Museum in The Hague.

Both KLM and Foam have a special bond with the Dutch photographer Paul Huf (1924-2002). The KLM Paul Huf Award was established in 1999, commemorating the photographer’s close ties with the airline, spanning many decades. Paul Huf was renowned for his innovative approach to photography. He worked on assignment for KLM for 50 years. One of the last major projects that Paul Huf was personally involved in was the establishment of a photography museum in Amsterdam. Foam was founded in 2001. Paul Huf passed away in 2002.