Richard Wainwright

The coldest capital city in the world. Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia, 2008

Richard Wainwright (b.1973, England) received a degree in Documentary Photography at University of Wales, Newport Richard has been reporting on news and humanitarian issues. He has been a senior staff photographer with the Jersey Evening Post since 2002 and also works closely with aid agencies on assignment documenting their activities, writing stories and producing multimedia packages. Since 2003, he has been filing news pictures for Corbis. His work has been widely published including Newsweek, The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The Independent and The Irish Independent. His work has resulted in numerous exhibitions in Jersey, London and Australia.

About the Photograph:

“This assignment to Mongolia was shot for an upcoming exhibition in Jersey for the Amnesty Human Rights Film Festival. The trip resulted in two seperate stories and multimedia presentations Mongolia: Urbanisation & Effects and Mongolia: Surviving the Winter. This picture shows Munkhbat & Altangeret (both 15) who have lived in a manhole together for over three years under the streets of Ulaan Baatar, the coldest capital city in the world. I spent time with them throughout the weeks and witnessed what a tough, lonely and violent existence they have to endure in temperatures reaching -40c. They were forced into this situation by divorced and deceased parents but they still hope and strive for a better future. Despite the harsh conditions they haven’t succumbed to the cheap vodka like the many other street children.”

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