Donald Weber

Donald Weber (born Toronto, Canada, 1973) is a photographer who focuses on the effects of world power. He is a member of VII Photo Agency. He has had two of his books published; has had solo exhibitions of his work; and has received a Guggenheim Fellowship, World Press Photo Award, Lange-Taylor Prize, Sony World Photography Award and Duke and Duchess of York Prize in Photography.

Weber joined VII Network in 2008 and became a full member of VII Photo Agency in 2013.

Weber focuses on the effects of world power, how state power functions the world over and how those in power use theatre to coerce their subjects; he seeks to uncover the unspoken collaboration between the parties with his photography.

He worked in the Ukraine and Russia for seven years, making numerous visits beginning in 2005. In 2010 and 2011 for his book Interrogations he investigated the power relationship between police and criminals by photographing people being interrogated by Ukrainian police and subjected to both psychological and physical abuse in order to extract information. Weber has spoken about how these techniques are not specific to the Ukraine but are standard police practice and used elsewhere, for example in Canada. In The Photobook: A History, Vol. 3, Martin Parr and Gerry Badger praised Interrogations, writing "Weber's vision is clear-eyed and unflinching in its sober directness, which makes it both effective and discomforting to look at."

• Bastard Eden, Our Chernobyl. Portland, Oregon: Photolucida, 2008. ISBN 978-1934334058. Text by Larry Frolick.
• Interrogations. Amsterdam: Schilt, 2011. ISBN 978-9053307595. Epilogue by Larry Frolick.
• Barricade: The EuroMaidan Revolt. Amsterdam: Schilt, 2015. ISBN 978-9053308417. By Weber and Arthur Bondar. Text by Larry Frolick, "Pursued by the Thing: God, History & Ukraine".

Solo exhibitions

• 2009: The Drunken Bride, Russia Unveiled, Pikto Galllery, Toronto, Canada, 29 April – 31 May 2009.
• 2009: Russian Archive, Alice Austen House, New York, New York.
• 2007: PHODAR Photography Biennial, PHODAR Foundation, Pleven, Bulgaria.

Group exhibitions and exhibitions with others

• 2013: Interrogations, White Cloth Gallery, Leeds, England, 21 February – 2 April 2013. With Maciej Dakowicz.
• 2014: Shift: Ukraine in crisis, Third Floor Gallery, Cardiff, Wales, 3 May – 29 June 2014. Photographs by Alexander Chekmenev, Maxim Dondyuk, Corentin Fohlen, Louisa Gouliamaki, Brendan Hoffman, Tom Jamieson, Marco Kesseler, Anastasia Taylor-Lind, Donald Weber and Emine Ziyatdinova.

• "Fifty best bets at Contact 2009: Donald Weber". Toronto Life. 4 May 2009. Retrieved 8 December 2014. 
• "Donald Weber". LensCulture. Retrieved 8 December 2014. 
• "RESULTS from the competition of PHODAR Biennial'07". PHODAR Biennial. Retrieved 17 March 2014. 
• "Donald Weber: Interrogations". White Cloth Gallery. Retrieved 8 December 2014. 
• "Saturday May 3 – Sunday June 29, 2014", Third Floor Gallery. Accessed 6 July 2014.
• "Exhibitions: Shift: Ukraine in Crisis", VII Photo Agency. 29 September 2014.

• 2006: Lange-Taylor Prize from the Center for Documentary Studies, Duke University, Durham, NC, with Larry Frolick.
• 2006: Honorable mention, World Press Photo Awards, Daily Life category, World Press Photo, Amsterdam.
• 2007: Guggenheim Fellowship to work on Interrogations.
• 2007: Critical Mass Book Award, Photolucida, for Interrogations.
• 2009: Duke and Duchess of York Prize in Photography, Canada Council.
• 2012: Emergency Fund Grant, Magnum Foundation.
• 2012: Sony World Photography Award, World Photography Organisation, Professional category, for Life in the Exclusion Zone.
• 2012: First prize, World Press Photo Awards, Portraits–Stories category, World Press Photo, Amsterdam, for Interrogation Room.
• 2014: Shortlisted / finalist for the Scotiabank Photography Prize, Scotiabank, for Interrogations.

• "Mila Teshaieva Wins Critical Mass Book Award", Photo District News. Accessed 9 December 2014.
• "Curriculum Vitae", Donald Weber. Accessed 9 December 2014.
• "War is Good*", Magnum Foundation. Accessed 8 December 2014.
• "2012, Portraits, 1st prize stories, Donald Weber". World Press Photo. Retrieved 8 December 2014. 
• "Finalists". Scotiabank. Retrieved 8 December 2014. 
• Whyte, Murray (4 March 2014). "Scotiabank Photography Award finalists: Graham, Weber, Ruwedel". Toronto Star. Retrieved 8 December 2014.