Quebec photographer wins World Press Photo award

Charles-Frédérick Ouellet's photo 'A Day in the Life of a Quebec Fire Crew' has been selected by the World Press Photo Foundation in the 'single images' category for the North and Central America region. The photograph was published in The Globe and Mail. (Charles-Frederick Ouellet/Photo PC/provided by Expo World Press Photo Montreal)

For the first time in 25 years, a Quebecer has won the prestigious World Press Photo photography competition.

Documentary photographer Charles-Frédérick Ouellet is one of the winners in the North and Central America region, in the "single images" category.

The World Press Photo Montreal Expo team made the announcement on Wednesday.

It said that the World Press Photo Foundation had chosen the Quebecer for a photograph taken during the forest fires in Quebec in the summer of 2023. The black-and-white photo, showing an auxiliary firefighter, had been published in The Globe and Mail.

The photo is entitled "A Day in the Life of a Quebec Fire Crew." It shows Théo Dagnaud scanning the horizon at the very end of a patrol, to ensure that no smoke is visible on the horizon.

"This image resonates like a long silence, far from the world of human beings. It evokes that moment when we realize that we are an integral part of the ecosystem, that our survival depends on our understanding of nature," said Ouellet in a press release.

The photo will be presented at the World Press Photo Montreal Expo at Bonsecours Market from Aug. 28 to Oct. 14, as well as in the cities where the exhibition will make stops throughout 2024.

The Montreal team noted that in 1999 Roger Lemoyne was the first Quebecer to win a prize in the international photography competition.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on April 3, 2024.