World Press Photo 2023
Culture, identity, migration, and memories are the central themes of World Press Photo 2023, which is now arriving in Mexico City (CDMX).
Has a whole year passed already? One of the flagship exhibitions of the Franz Mayer Museum (and frankly one of our favorites) is just around the corner. The best of global photojournalism comes with World Press Photo 2023 to Mexico City on June 29th. This year, culture, identity, migration, memories of the lost past, and glimpses of near and distant futures are the topics you will find. Let us tell you why you should go see it.
Second year of the new selection format
This is the second year since the World Press Photo organization changed its award methods. Previously, they awarded prizes by categories, with three winners for each category. Since 2022, they not only have categories but also award by regions, while making more efforts to remove (as much as possible) any Eurocentric bias they may have. Additionally, they now allow modifications to photos in only one category: the open format.
Two of the main winners
The global winner of the Photo of the Year title went to “Mariupol Maternity Hospital Airstrike” by Evgeniy Maloletka. It portrays a pregnant woman being carried out of a recently bombed hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine. The baby was stillborn, and the mother would die shortly after. War images are not uncommon this year, but we noticed that they don’t dominate the entire exhibition. Undoubtedly, they are central themes in the European region, but thanks to the new format, we also see issues from Asia, America, and Africa.
Another set of photos that we believe will captivate your attention and make you decide to go are those that are part of the series “Battered Waters” by Anush Babajanyan, the winner of the long-term project award. This collection tells the story of limited access to water in Central Asia. How do its inhabitants live, and what problems do they face? We believe that art can be an exercise in empathy and a window into other realities, and these photos are a great example of that.
We love to see more diverse stories from different latitudes, and even if the winning photos may not capture you, we are sure there will be photos that impress you and captivate your sensitivity. Visit the exhibition to see them because we have only mentioned two of them; there are a total of 24 winners and many more photos.
When does World Press Photo 2023 arrive in Mexico City?
World Press Photo 2023 will arrive at the Franz Mayer Museum on June 29th. Do you already know who you will go with? We recommend that you don’t leave it to the last minute like we have done before. You can also visit Steve McCurry’s photography exhibition within the same museum.
