Photographer Daniël Siegersma was awarded the Steenbergen Stipendium 2018 on 17 October 2018 at the Nederlands Fotomuseum. Siegersma graduated from the Bachelor Photography at the KABK with the series Anorak in 2018. Alumna Nadezhda Titova (Russia, 1983) was also nominated for the award.
The jury, consisting of Merel Bem (chairperson; an art critic and writer), Henk Wildschut (photographer) and Teun van der Heijden (photo book designer), voted unanimously to select Daniël Siegersma as winner of the Steenbergen Stipendium 2018.
The jury report praised Siegerma's project and the Photography department of the Royal Academy of Art, The Hague (KABK):
“His presentation is perfectly balanced; everything is in its place and every component adds to the impact of the others. Siegersma demonstrates that he is a photographer who not only possesses a complete mastery of the medium, but understands current developments in photography. A film, an attribute, a book – he has incorporated all these in his presentation without ever surrendering command or losing control of his installation. Far from detracting from his photographs, the additional components support them and in every case contribute to the essence of the story he wants to tell.”
“At the same time the jury is very enthusiastic about the KABK, where […] there is a strong Photography department. Perhaps students who are encouraged to go into depth within a clearly defined discipline for a period of four years, can also control this quality if they look for the boundaries of their field. […] The Photography department of the KABK has managed to make a connection with the professional field to a greater extend than the other academies have done. The final exam candidates, who were standing next to their work, and whenever prompted, did not hesitate to provide an explanation, turned out to have well developed antennas.”
Read the full jury report (in Dutch).
More information about Siegersma’s graduation project
The Steenbergen Stipendium for Photography has been awarded annually since 1998 to the best photographic graduation project by a student from a Dutch art academy. The exhibition with the work of the five nominees is on view until 13 January at the Nederlands Fotomuseum.
In previous editions of the prestigious Steenbergen Stipendium the award has been received by KABK alumni Eline Benjaminsen (2017), Kimmo Virtanen (2016), Esther Hovers (2015), Olya Oleinic (2014), Willem Popelier (2008).