12 August 2022 09:46

2022 RAD Members’ Photo Competition winners announced

The RAD Membership annual photography competition celebrated its tenth year in 2022 and to mark the occasion five members were selected to win awards including Overall Winner, Runner(s) Up, Special Commendation and winner of the Public Choice Award.

The competition’s theme was ‘Monumental Moves’ where members were invited to capture a monumental moment in their dance journey, to choose a meaningful monument in their home town, or just photograph their favourite dance move. Open to all RAD members, entries came from 23 different countries from all corners of the globe.

Judging took place at the new RAD Headquarters in Battersea, London, at the beginning of July 2022. The judging panel was made up of:

• Steven McRae, Principal Dancer with The Royal Ballet,
• Melanie Murphy, RAD Director of Marketing and Communications,
• Penny Cotton, RAD Head of Global Membership Services, and
• Tim Arthur, RAD Chief Executive.

The winner

The Overall Winner of the competition was a photograph by Lizeth Leonhardt Avalos with the heart-warming caption: "A monument in our backyard… Mother Nature! Only some people will understand the emotion of what a sunny day feels like… This photo was taken the first day of perfect weather in Canada, the first day of spring wearing a dress after a long winter… My daughter was looking outside the window and she said mummy, “can I go outside please? I just want to feel the grass and touch the flowers.” The power of the sun is extremely monumental. After five months of the cold and the snow, the sun represents something that you just can’t stop admiring… it’s a magical feeling. With a small boost of vitamin D, the sun gives you a sense of emotional wellbeing and energy that conveys joy and peace. My daughter’s beautiful smile shines and makes her feel positive like she feels when she is dancing. As in Mother Nature the green of the trees, the flowers blooming, the leaves and colours all represents joy, love and peace. Then the snow will come back but we will be here waiting to see the sun again and all of its power… this beautiful movement of Mother Nature the change of the seasons in Canada. Finally, this resonates with my daughter Rachel as she dances like no one is watching, feeling the sun, the grass, and smelling the flowers in her surroundings with mother nature. "

All the judges were in agreement on how well Leonhardt Avalos’ photo represented such a monumental feeling.

Runners up

Two runners up were selected by the judges, the first of which was a photo by Surachart Chandenduang submitted by R. Aunyaratroungroj with the caption: "The movement is representative of elegance beyond expectation. The green cloth is a giant pair of wings, making a big move to the future. The background is a new era of the future."

The second runner up was a photo by Konstantinos Halabalakis submitted by A. Dimopoulos with the caption: "This photo express how movement and nature coexist and are interdependent of each other."

Special commendation and public choice

The Special Commendation was awarded to a photograph by Ernest Ho, submitted by S W J Koo with the caption: "Nonstop happy emotions from dancers allowed back to stage after two years lockdown."

The Public Choice Awards gave the public the choice to vote between 18 shortlisted entries and attracted 3,753 votes. A closely fought competition, it was narrowly won by a photo of V. Maselli photographed by Fabio Geri. Maselli captioned the image, "On a sunny Sunday morning, in Cambridge. People passing by stop, look at me and smile. Being a dancer of almost forty years, I tell stories with my dance all round the world, bringing a moment of light and joy in the hearts of those I meet."

Special guest judge Steven McRae commented, “A photo is a snapshot of life that enables viewers to feel and connect with the moment captured. As someone who has experienced the extraordinary freedom that Dance provides, the winning photo this year immediately connected with me, illustrating the pure joy that Dance can provide! Dance truly is for everyone and our winner this year exemplifies the uplifting and life enriching impact Dance can have on everyone!”

RAD  Chief Executive, Tim Arthur, concluded, “It’s incredibly hard to capture the beauty, wonder and emotion of dance in a single photo. But this year’s entries in our Member Photo Competition truly encapsulated why we all love dance and the impact it has on those who love it. Congratulations to Leonhardt, a gorgeous shot”.

Congratulations to all five winners who are a testament to the creativity, imagination and artistic talents of the RAD’s global membership community.