1st Prize: Marcus Maddox

Marcus Maddox image brilliantly succeeds in striking the perfect balance between ethics on one side and aesthetics on the other. Poetic and delicate, not only is its content and subject compelling: the sense for the color and the composition are also extraordinary. The composition together with the distinctive use of colors  becomes a metaphor that speaks not only about diversity, but also about embracing a more fluid idea of masculinity, away from socially induced stereotypes. Furthermore the image  – as Maddox says – speaks about “the uniqueness and significance of people of colour in a mostly white country” . – Alessia Glaviano

2nd Prize: Pieter Henket

This beautiful image is part of “Congo Tales”, a collaborative project comprised of Dutch photographer Pieter Henket & Eva Vonk, a Dutch producer. The project aim to raise awareness on the ecological importance of the Congo Basin, which is the second-largest tropical forest in the world after the Amazon. The team spent five years in the region working closely with the Mbomo community.

This carefully crafted project constitutes a clever multi layered work, where ethics and aesthetics meet in a poetic and commanding way. I feel that nowadays with the incredible amount of excellent works out there, we need more projects like this, at the intersection between reality and artistic interpretation, which could – sometimes – be the best way to direct attention on a given topic. We should embrace the fact that in a period that sees an increasing sophistication in terms of visual language, there are different ways of telling a story in order to create curiosity and interest even on current and relevant events and topics. – Alessia Glaviano

3rd Prize: Julia Fullerton-Batten

London is one of the world’s major cities, but it would not have existed without the River Thames. Since pre-Roman times, the river has been the major communication and trade route between Britain and the rest of the world.

In her series “Old Father Thames” Julia’s meticulous and surreal recreated scenes depict a collection of carefully composed situations figuratively retracing the history of the iconic British River. Existing outside the concept of temporality, transported characters, scenarios and locations act as a vibrant and compelling reminder of the crucial influence the river forever had on the cities’ thriving development.” – The Independent Photographer Editors