Alys Tomlinson & Markéta Luskacová: Ex Voto & Pilgrims

My latest review for Church Times compares and contrasts Alys Tomlinson's Ex-Voto photographic series on the theme of Pilgrimage with the Bohemia-born British-based photographer Markéta Luskacová’s documentary series Pilgrims, currently on show at Tate Britain.

Mike Trow, chair of judges for the Sony World Photography Awards 2018, says that Ex-Voto is a sensitive illustration of the “idea of pilgrimage as a journey of discovery and sacrifice to a greater power” through “quiet images, beautifully produced, with a calm, spiritual feel that is at odds with so much of our frenetic lives”.

'Luskacová wanted to record the pilgrims’ way of life, because she thought that it would not survive for much longer. Tomlinson’s fascination with contemporary pilgrimage and the warmth of reception for her images reveal the enduring strength of pilgrimage as a human endeavour that has not been lost in the period from 1967 to 2018. Tomlinson’s images reveal the endurance of faith in the 21st century.'

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Norah Jones - Sunrise.

Spiritual power and sensitive engagement that define pilgrimage

Alys Tomlinson has been named Photographer of the Year in the 2018 Sony World Photography Awards for her series Ex-Voto.

Tomlinson says:

'‘Ex-Voto’ is an extension of my previous work in Lourdes. Still intrigued by this place of great spiritual contemplation and worship, I re-visited the project with a different approach. Shooting in large format black and white slowed the process down and gave me space to think. Using anthropological experience gained during my MA, I became interested in the markers left behind at pilgrimage sites. Placed anonymously and often hidden from view, ‘Ex-Votos’ are offerings left by pilgrims as signs of gratitude and devotion, creating a tangible narrative between faith, person and the landscape. Taken at the pilgrimage sites of Lourdes (France), Ballyvourney (Ireland) and Grabarka (Poland), the project encompasses formal portraiture, large format landscape and small, detailed still-lifes of the objects and markers left behind.'

'Mike Trow, the chair of the judges and former picture editor for British Vogue, said: “Alys Tomlinson is a worthy overall winner for telling a story so beautifully, quietly, and yet with a spiritual power that spoke of her sensitive engagement with the subjects and places that help define pilgrimage.”'

The 2018 Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition is at Somerset House until 6 May and features inspirational works by more than 600 artists, the exhibition showcases winning and shortlisted works from the 2018 Sony World Photography Awards, the world’s most diverse photography competition. Curated by Trow, the images are specially selected from a record-breaking number of submissions. The 2018 Awards cover a wide variety of genres, from architecture to landscape, street photography to wildlife, portraiture to travel.

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Karl Jenkins - Benedictus.