Art Wolfe's Environmental Photography Invitational celebrates 10-year milestone
Known for his passionate advocacy for the environment, nature photographer Art Wolfe created a conservation-themed photo contest in 1997 as "an event for the advancement of photography as a unique medium, capable of bringing awareness and preservation to our environment through art." This year marks the 10th anniversary of Wolfe's annual photography exhibit, which has gone through some name changes and is currently known as the Environmental Photography Invitational (EPI).
Working with foundations, nonprofit organizations and industry-related businesses, EPI was able to award more than $10,000 in cash and merchandise this year to 30 different photographers. In total, almost 300 entrants from North America submitted more than 1,400 images for judging in nine categories: Landscape, Wildlife, Flora, Man in the Environment, Environment at Risk, Underwater, Student, Indigenous Cultures and Puget Sound at Risk.
The 2007 judges:
• Gary Braasch, nature photojournalist
• Danita Delimont, photographer agent
• Steve Freligh, publisher/editor-in-chief of Nature's Best magazine
• Howard Giske, curator of photography for Seattle's Museum of History and Industry
• Darrell Gulin, nature and travel photographer
• Kevin Schafer, natural history photographer
• Robert Stahl, photographer and teacher
• Stuart Westmorland, lifestyle and marine photographer
At the heart of EPI was the six-week exhibit at Art Wolfe's Seattle gallery, which displayed 100 of the best prints from this year's invitational. Here, we present some highlights from that exhibit.
To view the entire gallery, or for more information about EPI, visit epinvitational.com.
