2009 Infinity Award: Publication

Over the years Aglaia Konrad has shot photographs all over the world, putting together an extensive archive of images from cities as diverse as São Paulo, Beijing, Chicago, Dakar, Tokyo, Cairo, and Shanghai in an effort to understand contemporary urban culture. Born in Salzburg, Austria, she currently lives and works in Brussels, where she was recently a guest professor at Hogeschool Sint-Lukas. In her photographs she focuses on urban time, structural growth, character, and living order. Konrad's exhibitions demonstrate her interest in how the exhibition space relates to the outside world.

In her book, Desert Cities, published by JRP|Ringier, Zürich, she focuses on cities such as Cairo, Alexandria, and Anwar el Sadat. This is not classic architectural or documentary photography: her way of seeing is unadorned and draws our attention straight to the history of the real setting. The photographs show the application of "modernist" principles to architectural development in desert landscapes. Konrad has participated in numerous exhibitions and her work has appeared in many other publications including Camera Austria, Elasticity, and Iconocity.