Istanbul Photo Awards 2023 exhibition opens in Turkey

Anadolu's flagship Istanbul Photo Awards 2023 exhibition has kicked off in Turkey, showcasing award-winning news photographs from international contestants of the event, which drew a large number of people as well as high dignitaries.

Handan Inci Elci, president of the Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University (MSGSU), Ukrainian Consul General in Istanbul Roman Nedilskyi, and Beyoglu municipality Mayor Haydar Ali Yildiz attended the exhibition at the campus Tophane-i Amire Culture and Art Center Five Domes Hall in Turkey’s metropolitan Istanbul, on Tuesday.

The exhibition, which runs until Sept. 29 and culminates with awards for the best photographs in various categories, was hosted by Serdar Karagoz, the director general of Anadolu, Turkey’s international wire service.

Speaking at the ceremony, Karagoz said that “in its 9th year, our competition has become a global platform with 16,000 photographers registered and one of the most prestigious news photography competitions in the international arena.”

“News photographers from all over the world are participating in our competition, where single and series photographs are evaluated in the fields of news, sports, environment, portraits, and daily life,” he added.

He said the international jury has difficulty selecting the winners from among 21,000 photographs, adding that "the tragedy caused by the Russia-Ukraine War is this year's leading theme."

Pointing out that Anadolu will also organize similar events in the Turkish capital of Ankara, the UN Headquarters in New York, as well as in London in the coming days, Karagoz thanked the Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University for hosting the exhibition, which is supported by Nikon Turkey, Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) and Turkish Airlines (THY).

"Istanbul Photo Awards is a very important international brand created by an important Turkish institution. Based on the qualifications and number of participants in this contest, we can easily say that these competitions have now matured," jury member Ahmet Sel said for his part.

Emphasizing that Istanbul Photo Awards will celebrate its 10th anniversary next year, Sel said the competition has come a long way during the last nine years and has become one of the most important photography competitions in the world.