Photojournalism 3rd place winner

Since 2013, I have been working on a long-term art project concerning women working as prostitutes in several European Capitals.
My main motivation for this subject has been to reveal unexpected views on this topic, there-by tackling the stigma that is attached to it. The close relationships with my protagonists are always very important to me.

“Butterflies Are a Sign of a Good Thing” is the continuation of this observational research project, that I realized in 2017 in Accra, Ghana, with a generous grant from the VG Bildkunst. It focuses on the living conditions and experiences of young people in Accra, particularly sex workers, who dream of leaving their country. Old tragedies and nightmares fuel an inner strength to survive in a society plagued by economic hardships, religious restrictions, and strong misogynistic views.

This series can be extended with interviews, videos and drawings made by the protagonists into a poetic multimedia piece that shows my female outsider’s perspective on the present day lives of young women in Accra.

Ulla Deventer is a freelance photographer and artist based in Hamburg. She is working international on personal long-term projects and is research student at the Koninklijke Academie voor Schone Kunsten Antwerp.

CV
*1984 in Henstedt-Ulzburg, Germany
2018 Research student at the Koninklijke Academie voor Schone Kunsten Antwerp, BE
2014 Master of Fine Arts/Photography at the Koninklijke Academie voor Schone Kunsten Antwerp, BE
2012 Diploma in Visual Communications at the Hochschule für Bildende Künste Hamburg, DE
2007 Study abroad at the Ecole Nationale des Beaux Arts, Lyon, F
2004 Assistant for the fashion photographer Iris Brosch, Paris, F

AWARDS
2018 Finalist of the Life Framer Award
2017 Finalist of the Lens Culture Emerging Talent Awards 2017
2017 Winner of the 2018 Organ Vida International Photography Festival Solo Exhibition within the PHM Women Photographers Grant
2017 Nominee at the 2017 Photogrvphers Grant
2017 Honorable mention at Life Framer Award
2017 Grant of VG Bildkunst
2014 „I‘ve Never Been Big Sick“ was nominated for the Horlait Dapsens Foundation Award

EXHIBITIONS
2018/02 BIP Biennale de l’image possible, Luik, BE
2018/09 Organ Vida International Photography Festival Solo Exhibition
2017/12 This Art Fair Amsterdam
2017/11 Photo Vogue Festival Milan, IT
2017/03 PORTRAITS Hellerau Photography Award,