Mermaids of Coney Island: Summer 2020

• Prize
  Gold in Book/People, 2nd Place winner in Book
• Photographer
  Nancy Oliveri
• Technical Info
  400 Iso Nikon D6500 With 200mm Nikkor Lens
• Photo Date
  6/1/20 - 8/1/20

The Coney Island Mermaid Parade is a festival celebrating the ancient mythology and nautical folklore of the sea and is held annually at the iconic beachfront amusement park in New York City on the weekend of the Summer Solstice. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and phased reopening of the city, the parade was cancelled this year. Instead, I went masked with a 200 mm lens to search for the real mermaids, under the pier, under the boardwalk, in the clouds and in the sea. On this desolate weekend and subsequent days I found more joy than apprehension.

Nancy Oliveri, b.1958, Providence, RI is a NYC based American fine art photographer.She is the recipient of numerous international exhibition awards, honors and features for her photo books, still life & street photograph.Esteemed curators and institutions include PX3 Paris, PH21Gallery, Guelman & Unbekannt, Fotonostrom Gallery, Julia Margaret Cameron Awards,Elizabeth Avedon, Mark Sink,The Big Picture, Urban Photo Awards, Soho Photo, Museum of the City of New York, Kyoto Journal, Musee Magazine, L'Oeil. Her recent AI generated work trained on her archives is current recognized internationally.