The winner of the public award is Ilanit Illouz with Wadi Qelt, in the Stony Light.

Wadi Qelt, in the Stony Light is based on extensive research into the natural elements and proposes an experimental photographic study of Wadi Qelt, a valley situated in the Judaean Desert between Jerusalem and Jericho, near the Dead Sea. The dramatic desiccation of the lake has transformed the region into a lunar zone, corroded by salt. The artist collects this salt from the desert floor and then, in her studio, uses it to fossilize her prints, lending them a sculptural quality. Both image and structural component at once, the salt solidifies the work and makes it scintillate, revealing the organic properties of the mineral, but also its hieratic beauty, evoking a landscape for contemplation but also a threatened ecosystem.

With the support of the Louis Roederer Foundation and Polka.