honorable mention
Pygmalion Karatzas greece
title
The Lagoon
His images are regularly featured in Greek and international media, have received 89 distinctions from leading global photographic competitions and the prestigious Fulbright Artist Scholarship award 2015-2016, and are part of private and public collections. Since 2014 he is the photo editor for the Danish Architecture Center and a contributing photographer to Arcaid Images London, iStock Getty Images, and Adobe Stock. Divisare Atlas of Architecture ranks him among the top 100 architectural photographers worldwide. He has participated in exhibitions and fundraising in Greece, Italy, France, UK and USA, and produced 10 book collections, with the ‘Integral Lens’ book receiving 3rd place at the PX3 Prix de la Photographie Paris 2018 and shortlisted at the Trieste Photo Days Book Award. 'Nortigo - architectural abstractions' received 2nd place at the Moscow International Foto Awards 2019.
In affiliation with the University of Tennessee Knoxville and professor Mark DeKay, their paper on a multi-perspectival approach to architectural photography was presented at the 3rd Integral European Conference; at the 5th Trieste Photo Days Festival and in 2019 became part of an academic mini-term / traveling workshop curriculum. Through photojournalistic reportages, collaborations with architectural firms, businesses and organisations, as well as self-initiated projects, he exhibits his passion and dedication to the study, representation and dissemination of the built environment and its broader role as a cultural asset.
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entry description
The Mesolongi-Aitoliko lagoon complex is located in the north part of the Gulf of Patras in the central west coast of Greece. With its shallow area of 150 sq.km. extended between Acheloos and Evinos rivers, it is one of the most important wetlands in the Mediterranean. The ecosystem comprises of six lagoons that are part of the Natura 2000 network protected by the Ramsar Convention. The open and closed type lagoons communicate with the sea along channels and receives fresh water from the drainage pump system of the region, creating a unique aquaculture environment. Fishing is mainly done with traditional methods by local fishermen in fish-pools called ‘divaria’. The area is also rich in black salt marsh and hosts one of the biggest salt factories. The mineral mud and sea-salt make Agia Triada and Alikies beaches ideal natural spas, a daily ritual for locals. The name of the settlement ‘Tourlida’ was given after the marine bird species that were found in the area, the tourlides (eurasian curlew). This islet connects to Mesolongi by a causeway stretching 5 km. A landmark of Tourlida is the houses on piles. They are stilt houses built by fishermen, named ‘pelades’ in Greek. The photographic series were taken by architect and photographer Pygmalion Karatzas in April 2017 and fuses the boundaries between topographic/representational and expressionistic/pictorial iconography in its exploration of the integral perspective.about the photographer
Pygmalion Karatzas studied Architecture at the Technical University of Budapest (1991-95), Urban Design at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh (1995-97), and practiced architecture for 12 years. Since 2013 he is focusing systematically on architectural and fine art photography, producing a portfolio of 250+ architectural, commercial and artistic projects from Europe, USA and Middle East.His images are regularly featured in Greek and international media, have received 89 distinctions from leading global photographic competitions and the prestigious Fulbright Artist Scholarship award 2015-2016, and are part of private and public collections. Since 2014 he is the photo editor for the Danish Architecture Center and a contributing photographer to Arcaid Images London, iStock Getty Images, and Adobe Stock. Divisare Atlas of Architecture ranks him among the top 100 architectural photographers worldwide. He has participated in exhibitions and fundraising in Greece, Italy, France, UK and USA, and produced 10 book collections, with the ‘Integral Lens’ book receiving 3rd place at the PX3 Prix de la Photographie Paris 2018 and shortlisted at the Trieste Photo Days Book Award. 'Nortigo - architectural abstractions' received 2nd place at the Moscow International Foto Awards 2019.
In affiliation with the University of Tennessee Knoxville and professor Mark DeKay, their paper on a multi-perspectival approach to architectural photography was presented at the 3rd Integral European Conference; at the 5th Trieste Photo Days Festival and in 2019 became part of an academic mini-term / traveling workshop curriculum. Through photojournalistic reportages, collaborations with architectural firms, businesses and organisations, as well as self-initiated projects, he exhibits his passion and dedication to the study, representation and dissemination of the built environment and its broader role as a cultural asset.
back to gallery
