Petra Basnakova 2022 Canon Award for Potential
View through pine forest in Jabal Al-Baba © Petra Basnakova
Nasreen and her children © Petra Basnakova
Chaula © Petra Basnakova
Muhammad © Petra Basnakova
Khan al-Ahmar © Petra Basnakova
Nadia's bedroom © Petra Basnakova
Growing cactus tree © Petra Basnakova
View of Al-Eizariya through Jabal Al-Baba © Petra Basnakova
Sheikh of Jabal Al-Baba community © Petra Basnakova
Ismail's herd © Petra Basnakova
Still life in Masafer Yatta © Petra Basnakova
A woman from Nabi Musa © Petra Basnakova
Born of sand and Sun
In 1948, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were forced to leave their homes during the Palestine war. The same fate befell the desert tribes of the Bedouin, but their strong bond with the desert – the heart of their culture – failed to be broken.
Today, the number of Bedouin people inhabiting their original territories is shrinking, and many are gradually losing their distinct identity. Born of Sand and Sun is a visual metaphor of the gradual evaporation of these brave desert people – all that is left for them are fragments covered with sand, which in time they will themselves become.
About the Photographer
Petra Basnakova (b. 1997) is studying a masters degree in advertising photography at Tomas Bata university in Zlin, Czech Republic despite documentary and conceptual photography being closer to her heart. During the 2019-2020 winter semester she took part in a student exchange programme at Bezalel Academy of arts and design in Jerusalem. Here she shot her project Born of sand and Sun, a narrative for Bedouin people living in the Judean desert in the West Bank. Together with other exchange students she created an exhibition called Junction, at Maqam Nabi-Musa with the cooperation of the United Nations. In 2017 she participated in Slovak Press Photo and won second place in the portrait category.