Bronze in Portraiture/Other / 2025 / Portraiture / Other

• Prize
  Bronze in Portraiture/Other
• Photographer
  Laurie Swope, United States
• Date of Photograph
  February 2024
• Website
  https://www.laurieswope.com
• Instagram
  @laurieswope

Cold water immersion enthusiast Kari Pike relaxes into the cold water after breaking ice at a local pond in Massachusetts. She is a part of a growing community of cold water plungers in New England.There are physical benefits to cold water immersion which naturally elevate mood-such as the rush of endorphins- but there is also a great freedom in doing what you didn't think was possible.It is liberating to realize that it is okay to be cold. Allowing our very narrow expectation of what is comfortable to expand broadens our experience of being alive.

A self-taught fine art and editorial photographer, Laurie Swope began her career as a small town newspaper reporter and photographer in New England and continued on as a freelance photojournalist for various publications. Laurie credits her years working for daily newspapers and covering diverse and unique subjects for her passion documenting lesser known communities. Laurie's fine art photography ranges from portrait, to landscape, to unconventional lifestyles. It has been exhibited in galleries in Venice, Siena, Athens, Crete, Johnson City, Texas, Boston,Winchester and Marblehead.

Awards Recognition:

2025-Exposure One Photography Award Honorable Mention for portrait Nowhere

2025-Siena Creative Awards commended award in the portrait category

2025 Prix de la Photographie de Paris: Bronze Award for portrait Nowhere

2025 Prix de la Photographie de Paris: Honorable mention for portrait Abyss

2025 Prix de la Photographie de Paris: Honorable mention for portrait Glass

2024 International Monovisions Awards : Honorable mention portrait series Through the Ice

2024 Prix de la Photographie de Paris: Honorable mention for portrait Nowhere no.2

2024 Prix de la Photographie de Paris: Honorable mention for portrait Cold Entry

2024 London Photography Awards: Gold Winner for Fine Art Photography People

2024 London Photography Awards: Gold Winner for Portrait

2024 London Photography Awards: Honorable mention for Portrait

2018 International Monovisions Awards: Honorable mention for portrait series Before Self- Consciousness



Exhibitions:

2025- Static Cinema- Venice August 29- September 24 print "snowball" juried into Art Icon's Venice exhibition Static Cinema

2025-All you Can See-Siena Photography Festival- print "Nowhere" on display at the Sienna International Photography festival for being recognized in the Siena Creative Awards

2025- portrait from "Through the Ice" series included in Panopticon Gallery's "Second Glance 2025" exhibit in Boston

2022- Panopticon Gallery's "First Look 2022" exhibit in Boston featuring the series “Before Self-Consciousness”

2020- “Before Self-Consciousness” series featured in the 8th Edition Regional Showcase of the Fence

2019- A. Smith Gallery’s Open-themed/Unconstrained juried show in Johnson City, Texas 2019- A.Smith Gallery’s “Summertime” juried show in Johnson City, Texas

2018- Chania International Photo Festival in Greece.

2018- A. Smith Gallery’s juried exhibition “portraits” in Johnson City, Texas
2017- Blank Wall Gallery juried Black and White Portrait exhibit