Assignments - Tony Mcgrath

Uncompromising and extraordinarily moving, "Assignments: The Press Photographer's Year" is a unique reflection of twelve months of world events, as seen through the eyes of some of the finest news photographers of the period. Beginning with the aftermath of the Asian Tsunami, and ending with the trial of Saddam Hussein, 2005 witnessed events of major historic significance. From the death of the Pope to the London suicide bombings; from Tony Blair's historic third term victory to Hurricane Katrina and the devastating earthquakes in Pakistan - the world has been changed forever by the milestones, some tragic, some triumphant, of this dramatic year. "Assignments: The Press Photographer's Year" records the news as it happens, where it happens. Following the success of 2004's bestselling retrospective Five Thousand Days, the members of the British Press Photographers' Association (BPPA) have selected their best work from projects spanning the globe in order to revisit their definitive yearbook series of press photography. The result, edited down by an independent jury of photographers and picture editors from over 10,000 submissions, reveals the full range of the human condition, laid bare by the camera, and includes many previously unseen images. "Assignments: The Press Photographer's Year" demonstrates once again that, even in an age of rolling television news, Internet and satellite communication, the traditional still image burns the keenest, fastest impression on the public conscience: the most effective way to show the world the world as it really is. A major exhibition of the photographs from "Assignments: The Press Photographer's Year" will be held at the Lyttelton Circle Foyer of the National Theatre, South Bank, London in June 2006.