Edwin Koo

Edwin Koo is a Singaporean documentary photographer best known for his black-and-white imagery. His photographs reveal deeply-rooted social issues and raw human emotions, blurring the lines between fact and fiction.

Edwin worked as a news photographer for 5 years, before beginning his career as an independent documentary photographer. In 2012, he was awarded one of Singapore's most prestigious photography accolades: the ICON de Martell Cordon Bleu, which recognises an outstanding individual for his body of work.

In 2009, he was awarded one of photojournalism world's most coveted awards: The Getty Images Grant for Editorial Photography. Earlier that same year, his work on Pakistan also won the third place in the international award UNICEF Photo of the Year.

For almost 3 years after leaving his staff job, Edwin was based in Kathmandu, where he photographed for international magazines, focusing on the issues of human displacement and political turmoil. His long-term projects include stories of the Tibetan exiles and the Maoist guerrillas in Nepal, and also the plight of the people of Swat Valley in Pakistan.

Edwin returned to Singapore in 2011, with the birth of his first son. His first substantial body of photographic work was about the General Elections of 2011, which he documented it as a personal project. Eventually, it culminated in his first solo exhibition - "Notes from a Singapore Son".