The annual Sony World Photography Awards has announced the winners of its 2021 competition. The winners for this prestigious photography awards were chosen from over 3,30,000 entries.
British documentary photographer Craig Easton was named as Photographer of the Year for his project ‘Bank Top,’ which focusses on the representation of communities in northern England. He collaborated with writer and academic Abdul Aziz Hafiz to understand the representation and misrepresentation of communities in northern England, focusing on a neighbourhood in Blackburn, Lancashire to create some powerful portraits.
The project addresses wide-ranging issues of social importance such as housing, unemployment and immigration, as well as the impact of past and present foreign policy in one of the most divisive neighbourhoods of Britain.
Zimbabwean photographer Tamary Kudita was named Open Photographer of the Year, a category that recognizes single images. She was awarded $5,000 for her winning portrait, “African Victorian,” which depicts a portrait of a young woman dressed in Victorian clothing, holding traditional Shona cooking utensils, called African Victorian.
“It pays tribute to the contemporary being who is also rooted in history,” she said.
“A central notion in my work is the importance of African representation, and I am thankful to have received the opportunity to put Zimbabwean art on the map.”
Meanwhile, Coenraad Heinz Torlage, of the Stellenbosch Academy of Design and Photography, won the student competition for his series Young Farmers.
The project explores the challenges of droughts and safety, and debates around land ownership faced by the next generation of South African farmers.
Tomáš Vocelka, of the Czech Republic, won the award in the Architecture category for his stunning photographs of a former military complex that has been transformed into a pet crematorium.
Aren’t these some astounding pictures? What do you think? Let us know your views in the comments section below.