Each year, theWorld Photography Organisationcelebrates the very best images and photographers on the planet with theSony World Photography Awards.
We’ve recently highlighted some of the shortlisted images from thestudent and youth competitions, but now the finalists have been revealed before the winners are chosen in April.
55 countries have taken part in this year’s competition at the national level, while for the overall competition, 415,000 images from over 200 countries have been submitted.
The overall winners of the Student, Youth, Open and Professional competitions will be revealed on 13 April with images being exhibited at Somerset House,London from 14 April until 1 May.
In the meantime here is a selection of this year’s finalists:
Emovere by Valentina Fuscohas been selected as one of the finalists for the professional competition, under the creative category. It is part of a series of images designed to tell a story about migration.
“This photographic story was born out of a need to try to understand the most intimate, emotional and multifaceted meaning of migration: looking at my family, who emigrated to northern Italy after World War 2, and at myself, who left Genoa and arrived in Buenos Aires, a city that last century saw the arrival of millions of Italians in search of a better future.”
Here’s another finalist from the professional competition, this time an interesting example of portraiture by photographer Colin Delfosse. In a series of images called “Fulu Act”, Delfosse has shown the hardships of the poor neighbourhoods in the Congolese capital, Kinshasa, where single-use plastics and waste are clogging up the environment.
“On the streets of the Congolese capital, Kinshasa, artists raise awareness of the challenges the city is facing. The explosion of this megalopolis and its inhabitants’ increasing needs have led to a massive increase in the import of consumer goods and a significant appetite for single-use plastic, creating environmental havoc.
Poor neighbourhoods suffer the most, and in this increasingly degraded environment a group of artists question the profusion of consumer goods and rubbish by recycling them into costumes. Gathered in a collective, they re-embody their city by creating contemporary myths and performing in the street, condemning societal issues such as a lack of healthcare, pollution, deforestation and overconsumption.”
New Ways to the Future
Some of these photos tell a powerful story about the world around us.Simone Tramonte’s imagesare shortlisted in the environment category for the professional competition. These show some of the things humankind is doing to combat the damage we’ve done to the environment.
“Climate change is the greatest threat the world is currently facing. The challenge that lies ahead requires us to change our perspective and redesign humanity, so it is no longer separate from its ecosystem, but one with the planet it inhabits. The EU has set targets to cut emissions by at least 55 percent by 2030, and to reduce them to net-zero by 2050. Renewable energies, new technologies for food production and the circular economy are key solutions for achieving these Green Deal goals, and many revolutionary seeds have already been planted across Europe to make the future sustainable for the next generations. The net-zero transition has already started and is set to be the next industrial revolution: these innovative technologies lead the way towards climate neutrality, inspiring a virtuous model that will generate a new and sustainable cycle of life.”
Stal - Vernacular Animal Sheds
There is quite a range of images in this year’s competition, including some unusual professional-level architecture photos like these ones of livestock shelters in the countryside.
Thesephotos by Servaas Van Bellehave been selected as some of the finalist photos and show some interesting views of weather-beaten buildings in thick fog.
“Livestock shelters in fields are so common in the Belgian landscape that nobody pays them much attention, but the countryside offers a range of architectural gems in many shapes, materials and colours.”
Theseprofessional images by Edgar Martinstell a hard story of loss through the means of portraiture.
“In 2011, my dear friend and the photojournalist, Anton Hammerl, travelled to Libya to cover the conflict between pro-regime and anti-Gaddafi forces. On 5 April he was forcefully abducted and killed by government militia. Frustrated by the lack of progress in the investigation to find his mortal remains, in 2022 I took matters into my own hands and travelled to Libya.
This previously unseen body of work is structured as a self-portrait of Anton Hammerl through the people he photographed and met, and others involved in the conflict (freedom fighters or their descendants, ex-militia, local residents, Gaddafi loyalists or lookalikes, and so on). They were selected because they resembled him, espoused similar ideas and beliefs, or reminded me of him at different stages of our friendship. This project portrays a complex story, warped by absence, that talks of the difficulty of documenting, testifying, witnessing, remembering, honouring and imagining.”
Inside the Hamar Weyne Fish Market
Thisshortlisted imagefrom the documentary and projects category shows a view of the incredibly busy Hamar Weyne fish market, Mogadishu. It’s a vital part of the economy and a challenge for the locals, especially in hard times:
“The Hamar Weyne fish market, in the heart of Mogadishu, is a vital hub for the fish trade. Located just a few metres from the old port, it is the busiest and most important fish market in the city, with hundreds of fishermen relying on it to sell their catch. Despite the challenges posed by the ongoing civil war and a lack of investment in the sector, the market remains a key source of employment and economic activity.”
In Memoriam: Muralla Roja
These colourful and strikingphotos by Andres Gallardo Albajarhave been shortlisted in the architecture and design category and show the magnificent structures of the Muralla Roja apartment complex in Spain. Both the images and the architecture are award-winning or should be in our minds.
“Designed by Ricardo Bofill, the Muralla Roja apartment complex is one of the most iconic pieces of Spanish architecture. Over the years I have revisited this place to photograph it again and again. On my last visit, in December 2021, my goal was to create a totally different series by capturing the Muralla Roja during the day, at sunset, at night and at sunrise. I started shooting very early in the morning and continued well into the night. I then woke early to experience an unforgettable sunrise. Sadly, Bofill passed away just a few weeks after my visit, so I consider this series to be a personal tribute to him and his legacy.”
Loss and Damage
The professional landscape category is another part of this year’s awards that is unusual and tells a harrowing story. This is one of a series of images called"Loss and Damage" by Fabio Bucciarelliwhich tells a story of hardship, damage and tough times in Sudan.
“South Sudan has been plagued by political violence and instability since its independence from Sudan in 2011. Now it is experiencing massive floods for the fourth consecutive year. Since 2019, unprecedented rainy seasons have submerged large parts of the country’s landscape. Heavy rains and floods have swept away people’s homes, properties, crops, livestock, schools and healthcare centres, and caused extensive infrastructural damage to roads and bridges. The climate crisis is bringing further challenges to this already vulnerable country.”
FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship
The shortlisted images from the sports categoryinclude some impressive shotsof feats of human athleticism like this photo of a volleyball champion in action.
“In 2022, the FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship was held in the Netherlands and Poland with unprecedented success. Twenty four teams took part, playing across six venues in the Netherlands and Poland, starting in the GelreDome Arena, a football stadium converted into a volleyball temple. Serbia ultimately took the gold medal, with silver going to Brazil and Italy winning bronze.”
Africa Blues
A lot of the photos in awards are already pretty creative and fascinating in their own right, but the professional creative category is particularly special. This image, for example, is part of a collection called “Africa Blues” which includes posed portraits against backdrops that have been projected onto the surrounding walls.
“What will the atlas that future generations study look like? How can a photograph show the future? Due to climate change, some of the most radical transformations to the world map will be visible in just a few decades. Our idea was to find a way to show what the landscape might look like in some places at the end of the century, compared to the world we live in today.
Mozambique is one of the most climate-vulnerable countries. Droughts, floods and sudden storms are episodes that now alternate and repeat themselves every year, radically altering the morphology of the landscape. Using a special slide projector, we physically projected an image of the landscape’s possible transformation onto the land itself. The result is a series of complex and dreamlike photographs that become a metaphoric projection of a not-too-distant future.”
