Portrait Award November 2021
– Theme: Portrait Photography / Competition Judge: Dan Winters
Portrait photography has one of the oldest and most interesting histories that harkens back to the early days of the medium. Through portraits of iconic figures or ordinary people, we discover a deep interest in others. This award aimed to discover the most powerful and captivating images of today’s portrait photography.
Join us over on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter where we’ll be sharing all our favorite images from the competition. Congratulations to all the talented photographers who made it to the final!
Finalists
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1ST PRIZE: Sujata Setia
“First and foremost, a breathtaking photograph. This haunting image is a formal masterpiece. The context provided by the caption shifts our perception and gives us a more complex understanding of the subject. The photographer elegantly navigates a heart-wrenching situation with reverence and dignity.” — Dan Winters
2ND PRIZE: Rebecca Moseman
“It is not often that I encounter a portrait that stops me in my tracks. Periodically though, an image presents itself that is complete, in that it is so well realized that it cannot be improved upon. This striking image falls into this category.” — Dan Winters
3RD PRIZE: Foteini Zaglara
“A striking and absorbing medium format portrait that demonstrates an impressive understanding of light and form, with subtle textures, and a deep, auburn backdrop that conveys a warmth befitting of the title. Continuing the long tradition of surrealist-self portraiture, the artist casts herself as the protagonist, though her face is hidden, masked by the veneer of smoke that permeates from her lips. The enigmatic symbolism and absence of any description accentuates the sense of intrigue; what is she depicting? Some aspect of her subconscious? A feeling; memory, or perhaps a dream? “— The Independent Photographer Editors
- © Travis Smith
Judge: Dan Winters
Known for the broad range of subject matter he is able to interpret, American artist Dan Winters is widely recognized as one of the most acclaimed portrait photographers of his time.
His iconic celebrity portraiture has won him over one hundred national and international awards from American Photography, Communication Arts, PDN, The Art Directors Club of New York & Life Magazine. In 2003, he won the 1st place World Press Photo Award in the portrait category and was honored by Kodak as a photo “Icon” in their biographical “Legends” series. Throughout his career, he was also awarded the prestigious Alfred Eisenstaedt Award for Magazine Photography.
In addition to regular assignments for magazines such as Esquire, The New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone, Newsweek, Time, and The New Yorker, his work has appeared in five solo exhibitions in galleries in New York and Los Angeles and a book of his work entitled “Dan Winters: Periodical Photographs” was published in 2009 by Aperture.
