Wildlife exhibition at Auckland Museum

Wildlife exhibition to show photographs judged top 1% in the world: Auckland Museum

A tiny golden snub-nosed monkey keeping itself warm is one of 108 incredible wildlife photographs going on show when Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition opens at Auckland Museum today (Friday, June 22).

London's Natural History Museum and BBC Wildlife magazine curated the exhibition selecting the final images from a pool of 40,000 submissions.

Auckland Museum exhibitions developer Lily Frederikse says it is exciting to be able to bring this collection of photographs to local audiences, with no entry charge.

“In terms of the level of quality and its international reputation, this exhibition matches the best ever brought to New Zealand.”

“The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition attracts the world’s best photographers but at the same time I think one of the elements that will resonate with audiences is that sitting beside the work of these experienced professionals is a shot captured by a 15-year-old.”

In 2011 entries for Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, which has been running for 48 years, came from 95 countries. Photographs selected for the exhibition span everything from the monkey in China's Qinling Mountains to a polar bear in icy Canadian waters to the winning image of oil soaked brown pelicans photographed in the wake of the BP Deepwater Horizon spill.

Wildlife Photographer of the Year is being exhibited as part of the museum’s first CAMERA Season of Photography.

The season also includes a second major exhibition NZ-LIFE, featuring the best of the New Zealand Geographic Photographer of the Year finalists from the past three years of the national competition. Entry for both exhibitions is free.

NZ-LIFE: New Zealand Geographic Award-winning Photography 2009-11 focuses on New Zealand’s society, culture, wildlife and landscapes and includes the work of some well-known local photographers alongside a select few photographs from relative novices.

A number of the NZ-LIFE photographs have been presented as wall-sized images, giving audiences the opportunity to see detail down to the level of hair-like feathers on an albatross’ head.

“Being able to bring two photography exhibitions of this quality together in one place is a rare privilege for a museum.

“The international imagery speaks to the beauty and diversity of life, as well as its fragility, while having NZ-LIFE alongside the global content reinforces the uniqueness of our own environment and its intrinsic value.”

Auckland Museum’s CAMERA Season of Photography also features two lounge spaces inside the exhibition which will host weekly expert sessions with local and international photographers, workshops, daily family activities and holiday programmes.

ends

© Scoop Media