EXHIBITION: 19 APRIL – 6 MAY 2024 | SOMERSET HOUSE, LONDON

LONDON, 23:00 BST 18 APRIL – The World Photography Organisation announced today the overall winners of the Sony World Photography Awards 2024 at a special gala ceremony held in London. Now in its 17^th year, the Awards’ ceremony is a major annual moment recognising the best photography in the world today, and celebrating the images and stories that have resonated with global audiences over the past year. The winning, finalist and shortlisted images are on view at the Sony World Photography Awards 2024 exhibition at Somerset House, London from 19 April.

The prestigious Photographer of the Year title was awarded to Juliette Pavy for her series Spiralkampagnen: Forced Contraception and Unintended Sterilisation of Greenlandic Women. Pavy won a $25,000 (USD) cash prize, a range of Sony digital imaging equipment, and the opportunity to present a new body of work at the Sony World Photography Awards 2025 exhibition.

Pavy was selected from the 10 Professional competition category winners, who were announced today alongside the 2^nd and 3^rd place finalists in each category. From urgent stories documenting our changing climate and our relationship with the natural world, to intimate portrayals of individuals and communities, this year’s Professional competition winners and finalists represent an extraordinary range of photographic practices from across the glob

Notably, the ceremony also honoured this year’s Outstanding Contribution to Photography recipient, the internationally acclaimed photographer Sebastião Salgado, whose distinctive black-and-white works have captured imaginations over the past five decades of his career. Salgado was recognised for his indelible contribution to the visual language of photography.

Additionally recognised at the gala ceremony were the overall winners of the Awards’ Open, Student and Youth competitions and this year’s Sustainability Prize winner. Championing photographers at different junctures of their careers, the Awards’ Open competition celebrates the power of a single image, whilst the Student and Youth Competitions spotlight the work of the next generation. Established last year, the Sustainability Prize platforms photographers highlighting a positive change for our planet.

The Sony World Photography Awards 2024 exhibition is on view at Somerset House, London from 19 April – 6 May 2024. Among the most exciting photography events in London’s spring cultural calendar, this major exhibition features over 200 prints, and hundreds of additional images in digital displays from the winning and shortlisted photographers, and includes a retrospective of works by this year’s Outstanding Contribution to Photography recipient, Sebastião Salgado. ​

PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR

Spiralkampagnen: Forced Contraception and Unintended Sterilisation of Greenlandic Women by Juliette Pavy (France) is a documentary project exploring the severe and lasting impacts of the involuntary birth control campaign led by Danish authorities in Greenland in the 1960s and 1970s. This series examines the spiralkampagnen, in which several thousand Inuit women, some as young as 12, were implanted with intrauterine devices without their consent. The project traces the programme’s origins through to the present day, including the ongoing investigation by the Danish government.

Placing the victims’ perspectives at the forefront, the narrative structure of Pavy’s project is shaped by these difficult and important reflections on the collective trauma experienced by a community. The series uses a variety of photographic formats; from situating shots of the city of Nuuk and its clinical spaces, to X-ray imagery and archival photographs of the young women involved, alongside recent portraits of victims and of doctors who worked in Greenland during and after the programme, to the Danish parliamentarian investigating the spiralkampagnen in the present day.

Commenting on Pavy’s winning project, Monica Allende, Chair of the 2024 Professional Competition Jury says: ‘The Sony World Photography Awards jury lauded Juliette Pavy’s empathetic portrayal of her subjects, capturing them in a manner that is both dignified and profoundly intimate, thereby highlighting her exceptional talent. Pavy’s dedication to exposing the stark realities faced by marginalised communities, coupled with her compelling narrative approach, has not only earned her the prestigious recognition from the Sony World Photography Awards but also underscores the jury’s belief in her potential and the importance of supporting her career rajectoryy.’

PROFESSIONAL CATEGORY WINNERS

The winning photographers in the Professional competition have been selected by a panel of expert judges for submitting an outstanding series of five to 10 images, displaying technical mastery and a strong approach to narrative.

All category winners receive Sony’s digital imaging kit. This year’s winners are:

ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN

WINNER: Siobhán Doran (Ireland) for her series Sala Mayor (Living Room)

Finalists: 2^nd place Karol Pałka (Poland); 3^rd place Yaser Mohamad Khani (Islamic Republic of Iran)

CREATIVE

WINNER: Sujata Setia (United Kingdom) for her series A Thousand Cuts

Finalists: 2^nd place Mackenzie Calle (United States); 3^rd place Tine Poppe (Norway)

DOCUMENTARY PROJECTS

WINNER: Juliette Pavy (France) for her series Spiralkampagnen: Forced Contraception and Unintended Sterilisation of Greenlandic Women

Finalists: 2^nd place Brent Stirton (South Africa); 3^rd place Davide Monteleone (Italy)

ENVIRONMENT

WINNER: Mahé Elipe (France) for her series Echoes of the Hive

Finalists: 2^nd place Jean-Marc Caimi & Valentina Piccinni (Italy); 3^rd place Maurizio Di Pietro (Italy)

LANDSCAPE

WINNER: Eddo Hartmann (Netherlands) for his series The Sacrifice Zone

Finalists: 2^nd place Jim Fenwick (United Kingdom); 3^rd place Fan Li (China Mainland)

PORTFOLIO

WINNER: Jorge Mónaco (Argentina) for his series Portraits and Landscapes

Finalists: 2^nd place Aly Hazzaa (Egypt); 3^rd place Angelika Kollin (Estonia)

PORTRAITURE

WINNER: Valery Poshtarov (Bulgaria) for his series Father and Son

Finalists: 2^nd place Adali Schell (United States); 3^rd place Drew Gardner (United Kingdom)

SPORT

WINNER: Thomas Meurot (France) for his series Kald Sòl (Cold Sun)

Finalists: 2^nd place Angelika Jakob (Germany); 3^rd place Tommaso Pardini (Italy)

STILL LIFE

WINNER: Federico Scarchilli (Italy) for his series Flora

Finalists: 2^nd place Peter Franck (Germany); 3^rd place Beth Galton (United States)

WILDLIFE & NATURE

WINNER: Eva Berler (Greece) for her series Suspended Worlds

Finalists: 2^nd place Haider Khan (India); 3^rd place Jasper Doest (Netherlands)

To find out more about this year’s winning and finalist projects please visit our online winners galleries.

SUSTAINABILITY PRIZE

Kathleen Orlinsky (United States) was announced as this year’s Sustainability Prize winner for her series America’s First Wilderness and won a $5,000 cash prize (USD).

Orlinsky’s series looks at the landscape, wildlife and people of the Gila Wilderness of southeastern New Mexico, exploring the conservation efforts which have gone into maintaining the untouched natural environment and protecting the biodiversity of the area. Orlinsky’s project looks at the ways in which the people inhabiting the wilderness peacefully coexist with the nature around them, and promote the conservation of this space.

Commenting on her win, Orlinsky says: ‘I am thrilled and honoured to be awarded, and especially excited to be able to raise awareness about pressing environmental and conservation issues right now in the throes of the climate crisis.’

The Sustainability Prize is part of Creators for the Planet, a global year-round engagement programme set by Creo and developed in collaboration with the United Nations Foundation and Sony Pictures, which recognises the stories, people and organisations whose actions highlight one of the United Nations’ environmental Sustainable Development Goals. ​

OPEN PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR

The Open competition celebrates the power and dynamism of a single image. Winning photographs are chosen for their ability to communicate a remarkable visual narrative combined with technical excellence. Chosen from the 10 Open category winners, Liam Man (United Kingdom) is Open Photographer of the Year 2024 and the recipient of the $5,000 (USD) cash prize, Sony digital imaging equipment and international exposure.

Liam Man won for his photograph Moonrise Sprites over Storr, depicting the well-known rock formation of the Old Man of Storr on the Isle of Skye, Scotland, lit by drone lights and the rising orange moon. Taken late at night, during a powerful blizzard, this image highlights the vast mountainous landscape and the striking winter sky. ​

Speaking of his win, Man says: ‘Every year, I admire the winning photographs and envision my work being displayed amongst them. Being selected as Open Photographer of the Year in the Sony World Photography Awards is a dream turned reality, and leaves me feeling deeply grateful, overjoyed and absolutely speechless!’

STUDENT PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR

For this year’s Student competition, photography students were invited to submit a series of five to 10 images responding to the brief of Home, highlighting their personal perspectives on place, community, identity and belonging. ​

Kayin Luys (Belgium) of LUCA School of Arts Sint Lukas Brussels has been awarded the title of Student Photographer of the Year, winning Sony digital imaging equipment worth €30,000 for his university. Luys’s series Don’t Trust Pretty Girls is an intimate portrait of his in-laws, highlighting the ways in which he has come to know his partner’s family, and has become part of their day-to-day traditions and rituals. ​

Commenting on his win Luys says: ‘Photography has been an important way for me to further explore my surroundings. In my work, I relate to and take inspiration from the stories confided in me. I am touched and honoured that those big and small stories are reaching a wider audience and gaining further recognition, due to the Sony World Photography Awards.‘

YOUTH PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR

This year entrants to the Youth competition were invited to respond to the theme Through Your Eyes and share their unique understanding of the world around them. Selected from a shortlist of 10 photographers aged 19 and under, Daniel Murray (United Kingdom, 15 years-old) is the Youth Photographer of the Year, receiving Sony digital imaging kit and global exposure. ​

Murray’s photograph of a solitary surfer on an empty Cornish beach captures the quiet atmosphere of the end of the summer season, and the expansive beach landscapes of the English seaside. Through its soft tones, the image captures the warm light of late summer. ​ ​

Commenting on his win, Murray says: ‘I’m very happy and proud of myself, as this is a great achievement as a young photographer. This motivates me to keep going and improve as a photographer. Thanks to the Sony World Photography Awards for this opportunity!’

OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION TO PHOTOGRAPHY

This year’s Outstanding Contribution to Photography prize has been awarded to the esteemed photographer Sebastião Salgado. One of the most accomplished photographers working today, Sebastião Salgado has achieved international acclaim for his remarkable black-and-white compositions captured over a career spanning more than 50 years.

More than 40 images by the photographer will be on view at the Sony World Photography Awards 2024 exhibition at Somerset House. The selection, made by the photographer, highlights the key themes and milestones over the last five decades of his career, featuring works from his iconic early projects such as Gold (1986) and Workers (1993), and more recent bodies of work like Genesis (2011) and Amazônia (2019

EDGAR MARTINS | SOLO PRESENTATION ​

In addition to the work of this year’s overall and category winners, the Sony World Photography Awards exhibition features a solo presentation by the 2023 Photographer of the Year winner Edgar Martins (Portugal).

The acclaimed photographer presents a selection of images from his series Anton’s hand is made of Guilt. No muscle or bone. He has a Gung-ho Finger and a Grief-stricken Thumb. Building on his winning project from 2023, Our War, this presentation showcases a long-term project of Martins’, commemorating the loss of his close friend, photojournalist Anton Hammerl, who was killed during the Libyan Civil War in 2011.

PROFESSIONAL COMPETITION FINALISTS AND SHORTLIST

OPEN COMPETITION 2024 WINNERS AND SHORTLIST

STUDENT & YOUTH COMPETITIONS 2024 WINNERS AND SHORTLIST

PRESS CONTACTS

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Polly Brock / Vanda Ivančić on media@creoarts.com

NOTES TO EDITORS

ABOUT SONY WORLD PHOTOGRAPHY AWARDS

Produced by the World Photography Organisation, the internationally acclaimed Sony World Photography Awards is one of the most important fixtures in the global photographic calendar. Now in its 17^th year, the free-to-enter Awards are a global voice for photography and provide a vital insight into contemporary photography today. For both established and emerging artists, the Awards offer world-class opportunities for exposure of their work. The Awards additionally recognise the world’s most influential artists working in the medium through the Outstanding Contribution to Photography award; the acclaimed photographer Sebastião Salgado is the 2024 recipient of this award, joining a distinguished list of iconic names including William Eggleston, Mary Ellen Mark, Martin Parr, Candida Höfer, Nadav Kander, Gerhard Steidl, Graciela Iturbide, Edward Burtynsky and Rinko Kawauchi. The Awards showcase the works of winning and shortlisted photographers at a prestigious annual exhibition at Somerset House, London. Our hashtags to follow are #SonyWorldPhotographyAwards and #SWPA2024. worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards-exhibition

2024 JUDGES

Professional Competition: Elena Navarro, Photo Curator, Producer, and Consultant, Mexico; Mutsuko Ota, Editorial Director, IMA Magazine, Japan; Elisabeth Sherman, Senior Curator, Director of Exhibitions and Collections, International Center of Photography (ICP), United States; Tanzim Wahab, Curator, Spore Initiative, Germany and Festival Director, Chobi Mela, Bangladesh; and Monica Allende, Independent Curator, Photography Consultant and Chair of the Jury

Open and Youth Competition: Daniel Blochwitz, Curator, Foto Festival Lenzburg, Switzerland

Student Competition: Ravi Ghosh, Deputy Editor at The British Journal of Photography

JULIETTE PAVY

Photographer of the Year

French photographer Juliette Pavy is a graduate of the photojournalism program at EMI CFD in Paris. She regularly collaborates with the French national press, including Le Monde, Libération and Le Figaro. In the last few years, she has developed a photographic documentary approach towards environmental and societal subjects.

She co-founded the Collectif Hors Format. In 2023, she was awarded the UPP prize and the Françoise Demulder bursary for her report on the forced sterilisation of women in Greenland.

KATHLEEN ORLINSKY

Sustainability Prize

Kathleen Orlinsky’s photography explores a variety of subjects from conflict and social issues to unique subcultures, wildlife, and sports. She is a regular contributor to National Geographic and The New York Times, and has received awards from World Press Photo, Pictures of the Year International, and The Alexia Foundation among others. Since 2014, she has focused on documenting the human stories of our changing planet, exploring how the climate crisis is transforming the relationship between people, animals and the land.

LIAM MAN

Open Photographer of the Year

A landscape photographer from the United Kingdom, Liam started photography a little over 10 years ago and now specialises in drone-light painting. His goal is to celebrate our planet in all its diversity, by pushing the boundaries of photography. Nothing stops him from creating those special images that nobody has seen before, whether it requires snowmobiling across the Arctic Circle or hiking up mountains in the dead of night.

KAYIN LUYS

Student Photographer of the Year

Kayin Luys, b. 1999 is a journalist and photographer. Inspired by his surroundings, banal or conspicuous, he seeks the boundaries between documentary and fiction with his analogue camera. In this directed reality, he likes to bring people together, looking for connection. The result is a stiffened world in which colour plays an important role.

DANIEL MURRAY

Youth Photographer of the Year

Daniel Murray is an enthusiastic teenage photographer based in Scotland that loves taking still life, landscape and street photographs. Photography is one of his passions, as he loves creating images that have a certain aesthetic and story. Whether through editing, angles or composition, Murray’s aim is to create impactful visual stories.

SEBASTIÃO SALGADO

Outstanding Contribution to Photography

Sebastião Salgado was born in 1944 in Aimorés, Brazil. Following his studies, he began his career as an economist before starting to work as a freelance photographer in 1973. Today, Salgado’s photographs are included in the collections of numerous major museums and institutions around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC, the National Museum of Modern art in Tokyo, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in California. Salgado’s distinctions include the Eugene Smith Award for Humanitarian Photography, the World Press Photo Award, the Photojournalist of the Year Award, and the Erich Salomon Prize. In 2015, Salgado was named the Photo London Master of Photography, in 2016 he was named Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur in France and became a member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts of the Institut de France. In 2019, he was elected Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and in 2022 he received the ICP Lifetime Achievement Infinity Award. Salgado holds four honorary doctorates, including at Harvard University and at the New School. With his wife Lélia Wanick Salgado, he is the founder of the Instituto Terra, dedicated to the recovery of the Atlantic Forest in Brazil. He is based between France and Brazil.

EDGAR MARTINS

Edgar Martins (b. 1977) was born in Évora, Portugal. He has exhibited internationally and his work is represented in multiple museums, corporate and private collections. He was winner of the Photographer of the Year 2023. Between 2002 and 2022 Martins published 15 separate monographs, which were received with critical acclaim and he was selected to represent Macau (China) at the 54^th Venice Biennale. www.edgarmartins.com.

ABOUT WORLD PHOTOGRAPHY ORGANISATION

World Photography Organisation is a leading global platform dedicated to the development and advancement of photographic culture. Its programming and competition initiatives provide valuable opportunities for artists working in photography and help broaden the conversation around their work. The Sony World Photography Awards is World Photography Organisation’s principal programme. Established in 2007, it is one of the world’s biggest and most prestigious photography competitions; celebrating the work of leading and emerging practitioners and attracting tens of thousands of visitors annually to its exhibitions worldwide. World Photography Organisation is the photography strand of Creo, responsible for delivering initiatives and programming across three sectors: photography, film and contemporary art. Follow the World Photography Organisation on Instagram (@worldphotoorg), Twitter (@WorldPhotoOrg) and LinkedIn/Facebook (World Photography Organisation).

CREO

Creo initiates and organises events and programming across three key strands: photography, film and contemporary art. Established in 2007 as World Photography Organisation, Creo has since grown in scope, furthering its mission of developing meaningful opportunities for creatives and expanding the reach of its cultural activities. Today, its flagship projects include the Sony World Photography Awards, Sony Future Filmmaker Awards, PHOTOFAIRS Shanghai, Photo London and PHOTOFAIRS New York. Working in partnership with Angus Montgomery Arts, Creo helps deliver the group’s ventures, comprising some of the world’s leading art fairs. Taking its name from the Latin for ‘I create’, it is in this spirit that Creo sets out to empower and give agency to creative voices. www.creoarts.com ​

SONY GROUP CORPORATION ​ ​ ​ ​

Sony Group Corporation is a creative entertainment company with a solid foundation of technology. From Game & Network Services to Music, Pictures, Electronics Products & Solutions, Imaging & Sensing Solutions and Financial Services – Sony’s purpose is to fill the world with emotion through the power of creativity and technology. For more information, visit: sony.com/en

SONY CORPORATION

Sony Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation and is responsible for the Entertainment, Technology & Services (ET&S) business in the Sony Group. With the vision to “continue to deliver Kando and Anshin* to people and society across the world through the pursuit of technology and new challenges,” Sony Corporation supports the Sony Group with technology to create the entertainment of the future together with creators. For more information, visit: www.sony.net ​

*Both Japanese words, Kando means emotion and Anshin has various meanings such as peace of mind, reassurance, reliability and trust.

VISITOR INFORMATION

Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition 2024

Dates: 19 April – 6 May 2024

Opening Times: Mon – Sun, 11am – 8pm / Bank Holiday (Monday 6 May), 11am – 6pm

Address: Somerset House, London, WC2R 1LA

General Admission: £15 / £11 Concessions

Booking Info: worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards-exhibition