Jo Ritchie’s portrait of her donor-egg baby has been listed for a prestigious photography prize.
Jo’s son, 6-month old Arlo, was one of the shortlisted entries for the British Journal of Photography’s Portrait of Britain award and features alongside 200 others showcasing a snapshot of modern Britain in a book published this month.
Jo was diagnosed with premature menopause at the age of 30. “We were told we didn’t have many options if we wanted to start a family.” But thanks to the NHS and the “amazing” team at Leeds Fertility Clinic, Jo and her partner Ollie were quickly matched with an egg donor. Jo: “We were very lucky that the IVF worked first time.”
The portrait of Arlo features in Portrait of Britain volume 5, alongside other images which capture the ‘changing face’ of Britain. Other featured images include portraits of artist Grayson Perry and fashion designer Zandra Rhodes, as well as less well-known faces: a boy posing with a football on a social housing project in Scotland, and a senior female police officer captured mid-nap.
Jo is a successful freelance photographer and the founder of Projecting Grief, an online gallery exploring the relationship between loss, creativity and healing. Jo: “Being listed for the Portrait of Britain, which has led to international press coverage and industry recognition for so many photographers, is really exciting. I’m grateful to the judges for seeing something unique in my image of Arlo.”
Image: Arlo, by Jo Ritchie (Jo Ritchie Photography)
