Captain Alexandr Erpulev

• Photographer
  Michael Gutsche
• Agency / Studio
  Michael Gutsche Photography
• Prizes
  Bronze in Editorial/Personality

Captain Alexandr Erpulev at the helm of the Russian Icebreaker Kapitan Dranitsyn while en route towards the North Pole. After weeks of heavy icebreaking, the ship had navigated to the northernmost position ever achieved during winter but had yet not reached its final destination, the German research vessel Polarstern. This portrait, taken in February 2020, captures Erpulev in full concentration on completing his nautical masterstroke.

Michael Gutsche is a German photographer who works with changing landscapes and global environmental issues. Gutsche’s work manifests in large-scale prints that have been featured in solo exhibitions at museums, galleries and institutions across Germany. In 2019, Gutsche was commissioned by the Alfred Wegener Institute from January to April 2020 as a photographer for MOSAiC, the largest scientific Arctic expedition in history. These images have been published in Focus, FAZ, Nature, and The Washington Post, among others. www.michaelgutsche.com Instagram: @michaelgutschephotography