Marcelo Pérez del Carpio was born in Bolivia in 1982 and spent his early years in Venezuela before moving back to Bolivia in 2000 to study architecture. Halfway, he discovered his true passion for photography and then photojournalism. After finishing his degree, he decided to become a documentary photographer. For the past nine years, he has focused on political, social, cultural, environmental, energy and climate change issues, following diverse aspects of cultural identity and social inequality in Bolivia and other countries with left-wing tendencies in South America. Since 2017, he regularly explores Venezuela's economic crisis and social collapse.
His work has been recognized by the Ian Parry Scholarship, the AI-AP, and PHotoEspaña. It has been published in The New York Times, National Geographic, The Sunday Times Magazine, Bloomberg, The Guardian, Time, Newsweek, BBC Mundo, The Wall Street Journal, El País, Neue Zürcher Zeitung, de Volkskrant, NRC, The Economist, Financial Times, Mongabay and 1843, among others.
He is currently working for international media while he continues developing personal long-term projects in his home country and abroad.
He is based in La Paz.
Awards + Nominations
2018 RISC Training. Sao Paulo, Brazil
2015 Eddie Adams Workshop XXVIII. Jeffersonville NY, U.S.
2015 NY Portfolio Review 2015. New York City, U.S.
2014 PHotoEspaña Descubrimientos Trasatlántica´s Potfolio Review. Rosario, Argentina
2014 AI-AP Latin American Fotografía 3 Selected winner. New York City, U.S.
2014 Nominated for Joop Swart Masterclass 2014 – World Press Photo Foundation
2013 AI-AP Latin American Fotografía 2 Selected winner. New York City, U.S.
2013 International Kontinent Photography Award Official selection
2013 Nominated for Joop Swart Masterclass 2013 – World Press Photo Foundation
2012 Ian Parry Scholarship Highly Commended. London, UK
2012 Nominated for Joop Swart Masterclass 2012 – World Press Photo Foundation
2011 PHotoEspaña Descubrimientos Trasatlántica´s Potfolio Review. La Paz, Bolivia
Exhibitions
2018 Nuestro Fotoperiodismo (Group exhibit). Santa Cruz, Bolivia
2017 Beyond the Coca Leaf (Solo exhibit). Santa Cruz, Bolivia
2016 Beyond the Coca Leaf (Solo exhibit). La Paz, Bolivia
2015 Descubrimientos Trasatlántica PHotoEspaña (Group exhibit). Madrid, Spain
2015 Latinoamerica: Illusions and Realities (Group exhibit). St, Petersburg, Russia
2015 Photoville LAF 3 winners (Group exhibit). New York City, U.S.
2014 Ian Parry Scholarship Retrospective Visa Pour L´Image (Group exhibit). Perpignan, France
2013 Latin American Fotografia 2 AI-AP winners (Group exhibit). New York City, U.S.
2012 Ian Parry Scholarship Private view (Group exhibit). London, U.K.