The World Photography Organisation and Sony are delighted to announce the winners for the sixteenth edition of the Sony World Photography Awards. Revealed earlier tonight at a special black-tie ceremony in London, the overall winners for 2023 are from across the globe and their work is an exciting insight into contemporary photography. The night was hosted by broadcaster and art historian Kate Bryan and welcomed leading voices in the industry, Sony representatives, and press and media.
The Photographer of the Year title has been awarded to the acclaimed photographer Edgar Martins (Portugal) for his series Our War, a homage to Martins’ friend, photojournalist Anton Hammerl, who was killed during the Libyan Civil War in 2011. Martins wins a $25,000 (USD) cash prize, a range of Sony digital imaging equipment and a solo presentation of his work as part of next year’s Sony World Photography Awards exhibition.
Photographer of the Year: Edgar Martins
The Professional competition category winners for 2023 are: Fan Li (China Mainland) wins the Architecture & Design category for his series Cement Factory; Lee-Ann Olwage (South Africa) is the Creative category winner for The Right to Play; the Documentary Projects category winner is Hugh Kinsella Cunningham (United Kingdom) for his series The Women’s Peace Movement in Congo; Marisol Mendez (Bolivia) & Federico Kaplan (Argentina) win the Environment category for their series Miruku; Kacper Kowalski (Poland) rose to the top in the Landscape category for his series Event Horizon; the Portfolio winner is James Deavin (United Kingdom) and Edgar Martins is the Portaiture winner for his series Our War; Sport is awarded to Al Bello (United States) for his series Female Pro Baseball Player Succeeds in All Male Pro League; Kechun Zhang (China Mainland) is given first place in the Still Life category for his series The Sky Garden and Corey Arnold (United States) win the Wildlife & Nature category for his series Cities Gone Wild.
© Dinorah Graue Obscura, Mexico, Open Photographer of the Year, Natural World & Wildlife, 2023 Sony World Photography Awards
The Open Photographer of the Year award goes to Dinorah Graue Obscura (Mexico) for her image Mighty Pair. Entered into the Natural World & Wildlife category, the monochrome image depicts a pair of crested caracara birds in Southern Texas. Graue Obscura wins $5,000 (USD) cash prize, Sony digital imaging equipment and global exposure.
Student Photographer of the Year: Long Jing
The Student Photographer of the Year title is given to Long Jing (China Mainland) from Yunnan Arts Universtiy for his series Keep the Yunnan Opera. Jing wins Sony digital imaging equipment worth €30,000 for his university and inclusion in the Sony World Photography Awards book and exhibition. The series documents the dwindling groups of performers and spectators of the tradition opera in Yunnan.
© Hai Wang, China Mainland, Youth Photographer of the Year, Your Everyday, 2023 Sony World Photography Awards
Hai Wang (China Mainland, 17 years-old) is the crowned Youth Photographer of the Year, receiving Sony digital imaging kit and global exposure, for his image of a deserted school ceremony cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sustainability Prize winner: Alessandro Cinque
Alessandro Cinque (Italy) is announced as the first-time winner of the Sustainability Prize for his series Atrapanieblas (Fog Nets). The series documents an innovative solution helping to tackle chronic water shortages in Lima, Peru. Cinque shows how fog nets are used to catch droplets of airborne moisture and can collect about 200 litres (53 gallons) of water per day for local residents. He receives a $5,000 cash prize and a presentation of his project as part of the Sony World Photography Awards exhibition in London. The Sustainability Prize is part of a global year-round creator engagement programme developed in collaboration with the United Nations Foundation and Sony Pictures’ Picture This initiative. Set up to spotlight and amplify creators' stories promoting prosperity and peace for people and the planet, the programme aims to mobilise and inspire people to Act Now through photography and film.
Latin America Professional Award recipient: Angela Ponce
Angela Ponce (Peru) is named the Latin America Professional Award recipient for her series Guardians of the Glaciers. Documenting the inhabitants of the Quechua community, who live on the slopes and close to the Quelccaya Ice Cap, is the largest tropical glacier in the world, Ponce’s compelling portraits highlight how the locals are being directly affected by the ice cap receding by 60 metres a year.
An insight into photography today in all its diversity, the winners in this year’s Sony World Photography Awards spotlight the stories of our time.
You can enjoy all the winning and shortlisted images via our galleries here
