The forgotten war of Nagorno Karabakh

• Prize
  Winner in State of the World/War & Conflicts effects
• Photographer
  Mattia Vacca, Italy
• Category
  War & Conflicts effects
• Website
  http://www.mattiavacca.it
• Instagram
  https://www.instagram.com/mattia__vacca/

Nagorno-Karabakh lived for twenty five years in an in-between, neither in war nor in peace, between independence and nonrecognition. The conflict started in 1988 and escalated into full-scale war when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. Armenians went to war with Azerbaijan, with backing from Armenia. The conflict left 65,000 ethnic Armenians and 40,000 ethnic Azeris displaced. The border territory is now full of military camps and bases. In the capital Stepanakert a military academy substituted the traditional high-school. That forgotten war seems to be still not finished today.

Mattia Vacca is a freelance photojournalist and a documentary photographer.
For ten years, he was a daily contributor for Corriere della Sera covering breaking news stories in Northern Italy.
He is currently working on various personal projects focused on social issues and the consequences of armed conflicts around the world.
He is the founder of the independent publishing house Delicious Editions.
In 2018 he joins Prospekt Agency.
His work has been featured on New Republic, Wired, The Guardian, Die Zeit, BBC, Vice, among the others.
He received numerous awards including Sony WPO.

Awards 2018 Lugano PhotoDays First prize / Switzerland

2018 Photovisa Photojournalism Awards, Finalist / Russia

2018 Il Reportage Photojournalism Awards, Finalist / Italy

2018 Royal Photographic Society Awards, Finalist / United Kingdom

2018 Istanbul Photobook Festival, Two Books selected for the PhotoBook Show / Turkey

2018 Scan Tarragona Photo Festival, selected for the PhotoBook Show / Pourtugal

2018 Athens Photo Festival, selected for the PhotoBook Show / Greece

2018 Athens Photo Festival, Finalist / Greece

2018 Kolga Tbilisi Photo Awards, Finalist category Reportage / Georgia

2018 Kolga Tbilisi Photo Awards, Finalist category Mobile PhotoStory / Georgia

2018 Kolga Tbilisi Photo Awards, Finalist category Mobile OneShot / Georgia

2018 Balkan Photo Awards, First prize category Nature and environment / Bosnia

2018 Balkan Photo Awards, Shortlisted category Cultural Heritage / Bosnia

2018 Odesa/Batumi PhotoFestival two works selected for the night screenings / Georgia

2018 Indian PhotoFestival selected for exhibition / India

2018 Reclaim Photography Festival, Selected / United Kingdom

2018 J Photobooks Show, Cork Photo Festival, Two Books selected / Ireland

2017 Photogrvphy Grant, Nominee category Photojournalism / USA

2017 Felix Schoeller Photo Awards, Finalist category Portraits / Germany

2017 Balkan Photo Awards, First prize category Cultural Heritage / Bosnia

2017 Premio Vergani, First prize category Web Doc / Italy

2017 Phodar Biennial, Finalist / Bulgaria

2017 IPOTY - International Photographer of the Year Awards, Honorable Mention category Documentary / USA

2017 IPOTY - International Photographer of the Year Awards, Honorable Mention category Photo Essay / USA

2017 Kolga Tbilisi Photo Awards, Finalist category OneShot / Georgia

2017 Kolga Tbilisi Photo Awards, Finalist category Mobile OneShot / Georgia

2017 Kolga Tbilisi Photo Awards, Finalist category OneShot / Georgia