A mother holds her son, who has fallen into her arms in agony, suffering from the effects of tear gas. Fatima al Qaws’s son, just 18, had been part of a protest in Yemen, demonstrating against the 33 year reign of his country’s authoritarian leader, President Ali Abdullah Saleh, when he came into contact with the chemical weapon that put him in a coma. Qaw cloaks her son to protect him and soothe his pain. In this photograph, Samuel Aranda has captured a brave, fallen hero in his most vulnerable state and a mother in her most powerful. This is the World Press Photo of the year, 2012 and it is clear why.
Aranda’s photograph is currently on display at London’s Southbank Centre, next to other photographs that capture last year’s main news stories from around the world. The selection of images are incredibly powerful and moving, each in their own way. One of the most captivating and perhaps shocking images for me is of Maria, a drug-addicted sex-worker from Ukraine. She is photographed lying in a traditionally provocative pose, only the underwear she has on is ripped and faded, her hip bone juts out and her legs are badly wounded. Her bright blue eyes are overshadowed by the dark rings circling them and her blonde hair is limp and lifeless, tied up by an elastic band.
Leaving the exhibition and heading to the cafe for a cup of tea was an odd sensation. I suddenly felt exposed to people whose stories are normally hidden beneath numbers and statistics in news reports. Every now and then it is important to have a wake up call…this was definitely one of mine.
Rose Tinted Writer 