Dear Readers,
I’m proud to report that one of my images was selected as a winner in the Peninsula Photography Contest. It will be exhibited at the Palo Alto Art Center from May 19 through June 17, and will also be featured in several publications and websites.
The winning image, submitted in the Travel Photography category, is a favorite from my recent travels in Myanmar. It’s part of a series that depicts the difficult plight of the children of the “Bamboo Village”, an informal housing settlement outside of the capital city of Yangon (Rangoon), where 10 years after the disastrous typhoon struck Myanmar many of the displaced are still living in squalid conditions with little government support.
To me, travel photography is about more than just creating art: it’s also a means to connect with local people, capture a strong sense of place, and advocate for social change and justice. As readers of To Travel Hopefully, you’ve seen me return to these themes again and again. So I’m especially honored to have this particular image featured in the Peninsula Photography Contest’s winners gallery, and pleased to have this opportunity to share the image and the story behind it more broadly.
The winning image: “A fascinating visit to an informal housing settlement inhabited by people displaced by the devastating 2008 typhoon. A decade later they are still living in squalid conditions in bamboo huts with no running water. Here, children are filling containers with water from the lake and carrying 40 kg (88 pounds) of water, often more than their body weight, several miles to their families’ homes.”
If you live in or near the San Francisco Bay Area, please come to the show at the Palo Alto Art Center between May 19 and June 17. Thank you for your ongoing support!
Hey, congrats – nice image. Do you have enough room for more feathers in your cap?
Thank you, Larry.