Plight of Syrian refugees in UK earn national award for student
Fri, 27 Mar 2015 14:32:00 GMT
Student photographer wins second award for his documentary work
A FINAL-YEAR University of Huddersfield photography student has been awarded a major bursary by the Association for Photography in Higher Education (APHE), one of only three recipients in the UK.
Capturing social issues on camera has gained Alex Beldea (pictured right) recognition and his documentary project Valid for Travel, impressed the judges. In this latest work, he combines photographic images and personal testimonies of some of the estimated 3,000 Syrian refugees who have chosen to seek shelter in the UK. By spending time with the refugees, Alex was able to share their stories, including their own family photographs and keepsakes from home.
The Association supports the development of the study of photography within higher education and the bursary award winners were invited to the Offspring 2015 Photomeet in London, where they had the opportunity to meet with influential personalities from the photographic industry. These included representatives from The Observer, The Guardian, the British Journal of Photography and leading photographers such as Mimi Mollica, the founder of the Offspring event.
A passionate photographer since his teens Alex recently returned from his weekend at the Photomeet where he was able to gain feedback on his work. “I was able to meet and talk with some of the industry’s most influential figures. It’s not every day that you get to speak to professionals like Tony Bell, the photo editor for The Observer New Review, and Simon Bainbridge, the editor of the British Journal of Photography,”
Building trust
This is not the first occasion that Alex’s work has been recognised as he was shortlisted for the prestigious 2014 International Photography Awards for his photo documentary of miners facing redundancy in his home country of Romania. Alex’s photography for this project was also included in a four-page feature in F2 Freelance Photography magazine (below right).
Alex approaches each photography project with an open mind, undertaking initial research and then getting to know his subjects. “Often the direction of the project changes depending on the people I am working with and what they bring to the process. I am interested in people and the issues they are facing and spend time getting to know them and building their trust.”
Romanian-born Alex does not speak the native Arabic language of Syria, but was able to overcome this barrier by working with a Syrian friend and fellow student who acted as an interpreter. “I try not to be intrusive when working with people who are going through very difficult times in their lives. During the project some of the refugees shared their own photos with me (pictured left), which were taken at home or during their terrible journeys here using their mobile phones. For many of them, they could only bring a few personal possessions and their mobile phones are often their only way of communicating with their families at home.”
Pursuing his passion
Alex’s first foray into the industry started with sports photography when he submitted some of his football photography and an article to an online newspaper in Bucharest at just 16-years-old. Alex came to the UK from his hometown of Petrosani, in Romania, for the first time when he started as a student at the University of Huddersfield in 2011.
Since then he has continued to develop his photography skills, including experience gained in commercial photography during his university placement year. Working for an agency in Leeds, Alex worked with clients such as House of Fraser, Nestle and Asda. However, he wanted to gain a diverse range of experience during his time at university and has worked on everything from food to events photography, recognising the value of earning a living through commercial work whilst also pursuing his passion for documentary work.
Alex is currently working on self-publishing a photo-book documenting his time spent with the Syrian refugees. Inspired by the people involved in the project, the book also contains both English and Syrian text and Alex faces the challenge of how best to present the Arabic information as it is a language which is read from right to left. Alex intends to enter his photo-book for the Fotobook Festival in Kassel, Germany, later this year.
Graduating in July of this year he is considering further postgraduate study at the University of Huddersfield: “I have really enjoyed studying here and I am thinking about continuing on to a Master’s in Photography as well as pursuing my freelance work.”
