The World Photography Organisation is pleased to reveal the finalists and shortlisted photographers in the Professional competition for the Sony World Photography Awards 2022. Now in its 15th year, the Awards’ Professional competition rewards remarkable series of works both for technical skill and an original approach to contemporary subjects.
The winner of Photographer of the Year 2022 is chosen from the Professional finalists and announced on 12 April. A selection of images by finalists and shortlisted photographers will be exhibited as part of the Sony World Photography Awards at Somerset House from 13 April-2 May 2022.
Over 340,000 images from 211 territories were submitted to the Sony World Photography Awards 2022 and over 156,000 were entered to the Professional competition – the highest number of entries in the history of the Awards.
The three finalists and projects per category of the Sony World Photography Awards 2022 are:
ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN
In Nur-Sultan Javier Arcenillas (Spain) presents a series of photographs of the remarkable and eccentric architecture of the capital of Khazakstan. In Blueprint Yun Chi Chen (Taiwan) creates multi-layered images imitating the process of a traditional architectural blueprint or cyanotype using digital post-production techniques. Dorf by Domagoj Burilović (Croatia) uses photo montage to express the irony of how nature has reclaimed the houses of Slavonia, a region which grew rich in the 19th century from the exploitation of the local forest and land.
CREATIVE
New Waves by Raphaël Neal (United Kingdom) juxtaposes scenes of climate change with teenagers’ portraits; the diptychs highlight the devastating consequences experienced by those who will be most affected by them. Sometimes the Sky Above us is Open by Sarah Grethe (Germany) follows the photographer’s journey to her mother’s hometown in southern Germany, where she explores their relationship through staged portraits and still life. Mellow Apocalypse by Alnis Stakle (Latvia) reprises visuals from open-source collections such as museums, scientific institutions and image banks to create intricately detailed collages in which disparate elements jostle and collide.
DOCUMENTARY PROJECTS
The Long Days of Hanau by Fabian Ritter (Germany) documents the community in Hanau, Germany in the aftermath of the racist attacks in the city on 19 February 2020. The Children of the Financial Collapse in Venezuela by celebrated photojournalist Jan Grarup (Denmark) depicts scenes of the desperation and abject poverty of Venezuelans in Colombia. Insurrection by noted news photographer Win McNamee (United States) captures the dramatic scenes when a mob of Trump supporters descended on the US Capitol and fought their way into the building on 6 January 2021.
ENVIRONMENT
Shunta Kimura’s (Japan) Living in the Transition explores the impacts of climate change in Bangladesh, where locals increasingly contend with its effects such as river erosion, landslides, and rising salinity levels. In Nemo’s Garden Giacomo d’Orlando (Italy) documents the world’s first underwater greenhouse – a possible solution to the desperate need to find alternative and sustainable methods of food cultivation. Portraits in Ashes by acclaimed photographer Gideon Mendel (South Africa) portrays families and individuals within the empty shells of gutted buildings, poignantly capturing the destruction in the wake of wildfires in Greece, Canada and the US.
LANDSCAPE
Taken during a winter of unseasonably heavy snowfall caused by climate change, Solar Graphic by Andrius Repšys (Lithuania) captures sustainable energy sources such as dams, wind turbines and solar batteries from above, reducing them to graphic abstractions. Life on Earth by Lorenzo Poli (Italy), delves into the ethereal magic of nature and the mysterious beauty of an untamed world, depicted through a diverse set of landscapes.When portrait photographer Gareth Iwan Jones (United Kingdom) was unable to continue his work during the lockdown he turned his lens to the figures of trees against the dusk sky, creating a series of portrait-like images entitled Tree.
PORTFOLIO
The Beauty of Humanity by Anna Neubauer (Austria) explores the photographer’s desire to move away from traditional stereotypes and celebrate diversity through a series of thoughtful portraits. In Portfolio Hugh Fox (United Kingdom) captures quiet moments of daily life with family and friends during the pandemic. Commercial and editorial photographer Julian Anderson (United Kingdom) presents a selection of portraiture, landscape and still life images taken for various magazine assignments.
PORTRAITURE
Caryatis 2021 by George Tatakis (Greece) is a study of Greek women’s traditional costumes deriving from different time periods in Greece’s rich history, with each photograph meticulously researched and staged. Migrantes by the esteemed photojournalist Adam Ferguson (Australia) is a series of self-portraits of migrants in Mexico as they wait to cross the border to the US. Using a camera mounted to a tripod with a cable release, Ferguson invited his subjects to choose the moment of capture, thereby giving them agency over their image. Bushmeat Hunters by the respected documentarian Brent Stirton (South Africa) is a series of portraits of bushmeat hunters pictured with their kills, framed in a manner which evokes traditional paintings of huntsmen.
SPORT
Capturing the drama and excitement of the Olympics, Tokyo Twenty Twenty One by notable sports photographer Adam Pretty (Australia) shows the strength and prowess of the athletes. Kuarup by Ricardo Teles (Brazil) documents a ritual of the Xingu Indigenous Brazilians to honour the dead which includes a martial art called Huka-huka – this year those commemorated were predominantly victims of Covid-19. Loyal Fans by Roman Vondrouš (Czech Republic) portrays the zeal and devotion of the fans of the Bohemians Prague 1905 football club, who were not deterred by the pandemic restrictions, bringing their own ladders to watch games over the fence.
STILL LIFE
In his series From Nigeria to Nässjö, Cletus Nelson Nwadike (Sweden) photographs objects in the snow that particularly remind him of home , a way to grieve his late mother who was unable to gain a visa to come and meet his family. For Constellation Haruna Ogata (Japan) & Jean-Etienne Portail (France) created colourful abstract sculptures which they then photographed as a series of elegantly graphic compositions. Concordia by Alessandro Gandolfi (Italy) focuses on a series of belongings rescued from the wreck of the Costa Concordia, a cruise ship which sank in 2012 claiming 32 lives.
WILDLIFE & NATURE
The Fox’s Tale by Milan Radisics (Hungary) follows the photographer’s observations over a period of eight months, when he spent almost every night photographing a young fox visiting his back garden. Absolute Beginner by Oana Baković (Romania) is a series of images exploring the great variety and beauty of the flora in the photographer’s local area. Exotic Appetite – Inside the Italian Exotic Animal Trade by photojournalist and winner of the Photographer of the Year 2019 Award, Federico Borella (Italy) looks at the lesser-known trade of live exotic animals in Italy, where they are displayed and sold for huge profits.
The work of finalist and shortlisted photographers in the Professional competition was judged by: Rahaab Allana, Curator and Publisher, Alkazi Foundation for the Arts, New Delhi; Ângela Ferreira, artist, independent photography curator and postdoc researcher at Escola de Belas Artes Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro Brazil; Deborah Klochko, Executive Director and Chief Curator of the Museum of Photographic Arts, San Diego, United States; Richmond Orlando Mensah, Founder and Creative Director, Manju Journal, Ghana; and Mike Trow, Independent Curator and Photo Editor, Chair of the Jury.
Commenting on behalf of the jury, Chair of the Jury, Mike Trow says: ‘The Sony World Photography Awards 2022 finalists and shortlist are as diverse, challenging and, I believe, as powerful as ever. The standard of work in the Professional competition surprised me in its depth and variety. At points we all may have felt that the ongoing Covid crisis meant that the world had shut down but when reviewing these projects it is clear nothing could be further from the truth. To have the chance to see so much work from across the world is both humbling and energising . The importance of photography in interpreting our world, bringing vital humanitarian, environmental and emotional issues to the fore whilst also covering categories as diverse as Sport, Creative and Landscape make it such an exciting competition. Looking at photographs, and challenging oneself to read them openly and honestly is a privilege and with such a thoughtful, academic and global jury on board, I hope we have succeeded in our mission to continue to highlight the vitality and power of photography.’
The overall winners in the Student, Youth, Open and Professional competition of the Sony World Photography Awards 2022 will be announced on the 12 April 2022 and will go on display as part of the exhibition at Somerset House, London from 13 April-2 May 2022. For more information about winners and shortlists please visit www.worldlphoto.org
