The fourth edition of Pride Photo Award received 3,600 entries, 300 more than last year, by 387 photographers from 62 different nationalities. The contest ended on July 14.
Pride Photo Award is an international photo contest for photos that reflect sexual and gender diversity. Photographers could submit photos in four categories: Gender, Documentary, Open and the 2014 theme category ‘Getting Closer’.
“I’m thrilled by the enormous increase in different nationalities we have managed to reach this year,” says project manager Joeri Kempen. “We’ve worked very hard to reach photographers all over the world, and I am especially happy with the much larger number of contestants from Africa. Thanks to the help of Simon Njami we have five times as many entrants from Africa this year.”
Thanks to the network of French/Cameroonian Jury Chairman Simon Njami, for the first time Africa is well represented this year, with 20 contestants. Of those, 14 hail from South Africa and 6 from Zimbabwe, Cameroon, Congo and Kenya. A large number of supporters and volunteers helped to spread the word about the award, leading to entries from many more countries.
A surprise was the large number of contestants from Argentina: represented by 15 contestants it equals India and is only just surpassed by Spain, Italy and France.
Thanks to support from Chinese partner organization Queer Comrades, China is represented by 11 contestants.
Next week the entries will be judged by a panel of international photography experts, with this year’s panel chaired by Simon Njami, editor in chief and co-founder of the French art magazine Revue Noir, and former artistic director of Bamako Encounters, the African Photography Biennale.
The winners will be announced on July 24, and later celebrated at the award ceremony on August 29 in Amsterdam’s Old Church, marking the start of a two month exhibition featuring work from all the winners.
Pride Photo Award is an initiative of COC Amsterdam, IHLIA (International Gay and Lesbian Information Center and Archive) and the Homomonument Foundation. Foam (Amsterdam photography museum) and World Press Photo advise and support us. Pride Photo Award 2014 is sponsored by SNS REAAL Fonds, Prins Bernhard Cultuur Fonds, Amsterdam Fonds voor de Kunst, Van Doorne, Akzo Nobel, PVC, Lloyd Hotel, Trut Fund.
