Yurian Quintanas Nobel
Happy Nothing
Published by Witty Kiwi Books, 2014
First edition, limited to 150 hand numbered copies (this is n°73)
Hardcover, indigo print
217 x 155 mm
68 pages
Curated by Tommaso Parrillo
"For some people the desert represents decay and death. There is scarcity of water and shade, extremely temperatures and a lack of resources for humans to survive. But at the same time there is a long tradition of the desert as a place of healing, both physically and spiritually.
With the Californian desert as background, “Happy Nothing” is a personal journey that delves into the lives of its inhabitants and its secrets. Here is where ex-convicts, war veterans, retirees and people that for some reason have decided to stay outside of the society live. In these towns there is no running water, the houses are in ruins, the streets unpaved, without street lighting, there are no supermarkets or entertainment infrastructures. But despite living in this conditions, they call it the Paradise."
Yurian Quintanas Nobel was born in Amsterdam in 1983. He is currently living in Catalunya. His personal photographic projects focus on documenting people and their environment. After studying a specialization course in photojournalism at IDEP (Barcelona), he had the opportunity to assist recognized photographers from National Geographic including Tino Soriano and Annie Griffiths Belt.
Awards
2019 - THE NEW SCREEN AWARD
2018 - LENSCULTURE EMERGING TALENT AWARDS 2018
2018 - XXI BIENNIAL OF CATALAN CONTEMPORARY ART, SELECTED
2018 - SONY WORLD PHOTOGRAPHY AWARDS, FINALIST
2017 - FINALIST NEXOFOTO'17
2017 - RUBBER GRANT SHORTLISTED
2016 - FINALIST PRIZE OF THE BOOK OF MEETINGS OF ARLES
2016 - ARTS LIBRIS AWARD FROM THE BANCO DE SABADELL FOUNDATION
2016 - FINALIST OF THE GRAND PRIX FOTOFESTIWAL OF LODZ (POLAND)
2015 - WINNER OF THE OPEN CALL AT THE 2015 IMAGE MEETINGS
2014 - WINNER OF SFR JEUNES TALENTS 2014
2013 - CLICK 2013 SCHOLARSHIP FOR PHOTOJOURNALISM
2013 - AWARDED AS YOUNG PHOTOGRAPHER 2013 OF THE GIRONA PROVINCIAL COUNCIL
2013 - 19ª “LA CAIXA” PHOTOPRES SCHOLARSHIP, FINALIST
2012 - INTERNATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY AWARDS, HONORABLE MENTION
2012 - SONY WORLD PHOTOGRAPHY AWARDS, SHORTLISTED
2011 - TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR, SPECIAL MENTION
2011 - SELECTED BY DESCUBRIMIENTOS PHOTOESPAÑA
2010 - CLIC 2010, SELECTED AND EXHIBITION AT THE VISA OFF (VISA POUR L'IMAGE)
2010 - YOUNG SCHOLARSHIP FINALIST
2009 - TRAFIC09, SELECTED FOR VIEWING PORTFOLIOS
2009 - SCHOLARSHIP, TALLERS MAGNUM PHOTOS BARCELONA
2009 - SCHOLARSHIP, WORKSHOPS XIII INTERNATIONAL PHOTOJOURNALISM MEETING IN GIJÓN
2007 - LA VANGUARDIA MAGAZINE, FIRST PRIZE