Deutsche Börse Photography Prize: India's forgotten daughters

In the first of a four-week series on the artists shortlisted for the prestigious Deutsche Börse Photography Prize 2008, Drusilla Beyfus looks at the nominated work of the American artist Fazal Sheikh
See Fazal Sheikh's pictures here
London as a centre of creative photography takes a step forward with the Deutsche Börse Photography Prize 2008, presented by the Photographers' Gallery. Now in its third successive year, the venture acts like a magnet, drawing worldwide talent to the capital. Other related developments are also encouraging: the gallery is due to relocate to a new £15.5 million architect-designed, purpose-built address in Soho in 2010 and the Deutsche Börse Prize is scheduled to continue next year in a programme of off-site exhibitions.

Supported by The Daily Telegraph since Deutsche Börse became the sponsors, the award is characterised by a refreshingly unparochial, wide-ranging approach. This year's nominees are strong on concerned social observation. As Brett Rogers, the director of the gallery, puts it, 'Each of the photographers addresses subjects of critical importance and highlights the crucial role that photo­graphy plays in our understanding of the 21st century.' The pages of the Telegraph Magazine further enlarge our awareness by making available insights that might otherwise be limited to relatively few gallery-goers.
The prime mover in the story is Deutsche Börse, which is the world's largest exchange organisation, and is an example of money putting its faith in the medium of contemporary photography. It is well known for its collection by leading international photo­graphers at its headquarters in Frankfurt. Reto Francioni, CEO of the Deutsche Börse Group, explains why the company clicks with photo­graphy: 'Artists shown in our buildings still manage to surprise us with their extraordinary perspectives on today's world. They make us perceive our surroundings in a different way... this helps us to remain open to new perspectives and in our business as well, to "think out of the box" and remain innovative.'

See Malikh - a child of the Dehli slums and read on here http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2008/01/14/sm_deutscheborse112.xml

Photo of the day: Sunset over a lonely tree in The Arches National Park, UT

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