The photographer’s late friend, Ojibway elder Leo Bebonang, appears beside a reprint of an old Canadian Illustrated News page showing colonists arresting Indigenous leaders from his home on Manitoulin Island. Leo often said Manitoulin has always been Indigenous land, but settlers used it as a cornerstone in creating Canada, invoking the Doctrine of Discovery and Terra Nullius. These tools justified questionable treaties, dismissed Indigenous rights and established legal foundations that still affect Indigenous sovereignty today.
Series Name: Terra Nullius
Series Description: Terra Nullius, Latin for ‘nobody's land,’ was a colonial construct used to justify the seizure of territories deemed ‘unclaimed’ or ‘uncivilised.’ It served as a foundation for European expansion across the Americas, displacing Indigenous peoples and erasing their sovereignty. Beneath Canada’s progressive image lies a history of Indigenous exploitation, forced assimilation and uprooting, often obscured by romanticised pioneer myths and the allure of a multicultural society. Over the past decade, Giovanni Capriotti has worked alongside Indigenous communities in Canada, gathering archives, creating images and assembling collages. With guidance from local elders and those living with intergenerational trauma, this project disrupts dominant narratives by piecing together fragments of a silenced history. As an immigrant, the photographer’s aim is to confront colonial erasure, amplify Indigenous voices and advocate for self-determination – challenging the lens that dismisses these injustices as mere footnotes of progress.
Prestiżowy tytuł Fotografa Roku 2025 przyznano znanemu brytyjskiemu fotografowi Zedowi Nelsonowi za cykl The Anthropocene Illusion (Złudzenie antropocenu). Zwycięzca otrzymał nagrodę pieniężną w wysokości 25 000 dolarów, cyfrowy sprzęt fotograficzny firmy Sony oraz możliwość zaprezentowania dodatkowych prac na wystawie Sony World Photography Awards 2026.
