For the first time, the world-renowned 11th Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest Exhibition will be taking place at the Good Hope Gallery at the Castle of Good Hope in Cape Town.
The exhibition will be open to the public from March 12 to March 16.
The Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest is an annual contest for young photojournalists, aged between 18 and 33. The contest was founded on December 22, 2014, by the Rossiya Segodnya International Information Agency under the auspices of the Commission of the Russian Federation for UNESCO.
The Cape Town exhibition will be hosted by Independent Media, IOL, and the African News Agency (ANA), in collaboration with the Sputnik News Agency and Radio.
The Andrei Stenin Exhibition is recognised as one of the world’s top 10 photojournalism showcases and every year the competition attracts visual, captivating, and jaw-dropping photographs from photojournalists around the world.
This photo contest was created in memory of Andre Stenin, the Russian photojournalist whose unwavering commitment to truth continues to resonate within the media community.
Stenin was killed in the line of duty while covering the war in the Donbas in 2014.
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This year’s exhibition features a selection of winning images from over 200 countries, including Syria, Italy, Russia, South Africa, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar and China.
This year’s contest features five categories: Top News (single photo and photo series), Sports (single photo), My Planet (single photo and photo series), Portrait. A Hero of Our Time (single photo and photo series) and Top View (single photo).
The jury will award prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd places in each category. Some works can also receive special mention from the jury.
One of the photographs on the shortlist will receive the Grand Prix.
Editor-in-Chief for IOL, Lance Witten is calling on the masses to ensure they catch a glimpse of the illustrious work of photojournalists.
“I'm very pleased that IOL and Independent Media are once again media partners of the Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest and Exhibition. This prestigious competition highlights the bravest and most beautiful photojournalism in the world by young photojournalists. I would encourage everyone to head down to the exhibition at the Castle of Good Hope and witness the incredible work submitted to the competition,” Witten said.
He further expressed his excitement to have the work of aspiring award-winning photographers to be showcased.
“Some of the work that I have seen over the years has been inspiring and mind-blowing. IOL is proud to be a media partner to help bring the incredible work young photojournalists are doing in the world over to our South African and African audiences,” Witten said.
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CEO of the Castle Control Board, Calvyn Gilfellen told Weekend Argus hosting this exhibition in South Africa’s oldest colonial building was more than an honour.
"It is an integral part of the work we do to decolonise the programmes, exhibitions, and collections of this former bastion of armed colonial conquest, slavery and apartheid,” Gilfellen said.
"The Castle of Good Hope witnessed over 350 years of change and turbulence: the current trajectory towards a multi-polar world order, perhaps one of the most significant ones in the last millennium. We want to embrace and harness this change towards a better Africa and a better world for all of humanity," Gilfellan said.