bio

Chris De Bruyn fell in love with photography while serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Mongolia from 07-09. The culminating event of his service was a series of philanthropic photography exhibitions in the Mongolian cities of Darkhan and Ulaanbaatar.

The silent auctions for the photographs in the exhibition generated over 750,000 tugriks which were given to local NGOs providing sign language training for local families with a deaf family member and scholarships for well achieving but impoverished Monogolian youth.

Since August 2009, Chris has been working as an English Lecturer at the American University of Iraq- sulaimania. Since coming to Iraqi Kurdistan, Chris has had a number of galleries published on the BBC News website and television channel with the aim of giving a more balanced view of what life can be like in Iraq than what mainline media tends to portray.

Chris has had the opportunity to immerse himself in a number of rich cultures and he hopes to share the sights, the experiences and cultures as they continue to shape who he is. A portion of the proceeds from print sales will be donated to an exemplary developmental organization on a rotating monthly basis.

Exhibitions and awards:

• “Only in Mongolia” Solo exhibition- Oyuni Ireedui Complex, Darkhan, Mongolia. March, 2009.
• “Only in Mongolia” Solo exhibition- Xanadu Art Gallery, Ulaanbaatar Mongolia. June, 2009.
• MSU’s Global Focus photography competition. 1st place, judged, people’s choice. November, 2009.
• National Geographic’s 2009 International Photography competition-Honorable mention, people category. December, 2009. http:/​/​ngm.​nationalgeographic.​com/​international-​photo-​contest/​past-​winners
• “Only in Mongolia” Solo exhibition- Antioch University New England, New Hampshire, USA. April, 2010.
• RPCV (Returned Peace Corps Volunteer) photography competition- 1st place, Eastern Europe and Central Asia Region. Displayed at Ghana Cafe, Washington D.C. April, 2010.
• “Constructing Kurdistan” Solo exhibition – Doe Library, U.C. Berkeley. February, 2011- March, 2011.

News and media:

• City Night magazine- “Photos- Only in Mongolia” article. Written by Ramyn Raquello. July, 2009.
• BBC news. Iraqi election gallery. 7 March 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8554751.stm
• BBC news. Iraqi election video. 12 March 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/8564751.stm
• BBC news. Kurdish New Year gallery. 22 March 2010.http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/8579810.stm
• BBC news. Yazidi temple gallery. 3 April 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8593779.stm
• “AUI-S lecturer wins honorable mention in photo competition” Article. Written by Jackie Spinner. May, 2010. http://www.auis.org/node/353
• “California exhibit to showcase work of aui-s lecturer” Article. AUI-S. Written by Elio Boggia. January, 2011. http://auis.org/node/480http://
• “Kurdistan: from a new angle” Article. The Bay Citizen. Written by Aaron Glantz. February, 2011. http://www.baycitizen.org/visual-art/story/kurdistan-photos-berkeley-sf-state/http://