Photographer Jorge Bacelar
Bronze medal in Reportage / Photojournalism
Jorge Bacelar was born on 12th June 1966 in Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo. He is a veterinarian by trade but has always nurtured a love of photography despite only taking to it seriously in 2011.
His work as a field vet in the area of Murtosa, in Portugal’s northern Aveiro district has been his greatest inspiration. It has allowed him to get close to the preferred subjects for his photographs: rural farmers and their livestock. His photos have a raw, almost painterly quality that shows his close relationship with the people he photographs. He believes his photography gives access to a world few people know about.
“I spend hours talking to people,” Bacelar says. “The type of photos I take are very intimate. I photograph people inside their homes, their stables and that needs a certain amount of intimacy and close friendship.”