A Doncaster boy's moving photograph wins contest - and raises £750 for charity

A Doncaster boy has come out as the overall winner of a national photography competition after his photograph was chosen by a panel of judges - including a renowned photographer.
Jack Kirsopp from Doncaster was the overall winner of the ‘WellChild My Life Through a Lens’ national photography competition.Jack Kirsopp from Doncaster was the overall winner of the ‘WellChild My Life Through a Lens’ national photography competition.
Jack Kirsopp from Doncaster was the overall winner of the ‘WellChild My Life Through a Lens’ national photography competition.

Jack Kirsopp, aged 13, entered the ‘WellChild My Life Through a Lens’ national photography competition and submitted a picture titled ‘Resuscitation’ which impressed the judges.

Jack was born with an unknown and undiagnosed neurological disorder and has been in and out of hospital his whole life.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

His family are members of the WellChild family Tree and his mother Victoria is a WellChild Parent Ambassador.

Victoria said: “Jack’s photo is of the chandelier in our living room and when Jack is on the floor having life saving interventions this is the view of what he sees.

“It looks like a star shining bright just like Jack and a beacon of hope.

“This can be seen as an inspiration to us during difficult times and It is beautiful how the light spreads out and lights up the darkness surrounding it, light being life and darkness being death and the fine barrier between them both.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Jack has multiple severe complex medical needs and life limiting. He has had three cardiac arrests in his short life so resuscitation is sadly something that is all too familiar for Jack.”

Jack’s photograph was displayed with the other winning pictures at Christie’s auction house in London alongside work by over 40 of the world’s top contemporary artists including Tracey Emin, Antony Gormley, Rankin and Anish Kapoor.

His photograph was also put up for sale on the website Artsy and sold for £750.

The winning photos were also on display at a private reception at this year’s WellChild Awards, which was attended by WellChild patron HRH The Duke of Sussex and the Duchess of Sussex.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The photo competition, sponsored by Venture Photography, was open to young people between the ages of five to 24 from across the UK who are connected to WellChild, either as a previous WellChild Award winner, or whose parents are members of the WellChild Family Tree.

The aim of the competition is to show the world what life is like for young people living with serious health needs, or their sibling carers.

This is an opportunity for them to tell their story in pictures, to shine a light on the reality of life and to inspire others.

Judges for the My Life Through A Lens competition included renowned photographers Rankin and John Swannell, TV celebrity and WellChild Ambassador Gaby Roslin, owner of Venture Photography Nick Fisher, curator of the Helping Hands Art Auction Chris Westbrook and parent ambassador Leanne Cooper.

Related topics:

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.