World Press Photo exhibition returns to Hanoi

This travelling exhibition was officially opened by the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Vietnam, H.E. Mrs. Elsbeth Akkerman; CPV Central Committee, Nhan Dan’s Editor-in-Chief, Chairman of  Association of Journalists Mr. Le Quoc Minh; Vice Chairman of Hanoi Mr. Chu Xuan Dung;  the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s representative Mr. Tran Nhat Hoang and UNESCO country representative, Mr. Christian Manhart at the Martyr Monument square in Hang Dau street, Hanoi. This prestigious exhibition is one of many activities for Hanoi as a creative city of design within UNESCO’s Global Network of Creative Cities.

“It is a well-known expression that one image can say more than a thousand words. That for sure goes for the press photos that are being showcased in Hanoi at the shore of Hoan Kiem Lake during the next 9 days. The images shown are not just snapshots. Each picture tells a story about the lives of ordinary people in extra-ordinary circumstances; after living with Covid-19 for almost 2 years we can all relate to that.

The exhibition is also a celebration and acknowledgement of photography and photojournalism. Photos allow people across our diverse world to tell the stories that need to be told in a visual way - enabling us to become aware about events and developments that matter. Moreover, it does so in the most effective way since a photograph eliminates boundaries of culture and language.”

Ambassador Akkerman.

The World Press Photo contest is the world’s leading contest for professional press photographers, photojournalists and documentary photographers. Since 1955, the annual World Press Photo Contest has recognized professional photographers for the best pictures, contributing to the past year of visual journalism.

In an unprecedented year marked by the COVID-19 pandemic and social justice protests around the world, the winners offer diversity of interpretations and perspectives to these and other urgent issues such as the climate crisis, transgender people's rights, and territorial conflicts.

Speaking at the opening in Hanoi, Ms. Echevarria, Representative of World Press Photo Foundation shared that:

“By bringing these stories to you, we are hoping to create a sense of connection and solidarity between everyone, because it is through these stories that everyone in Hanoi is enabled to have a close encounter with different people from around the world. For example, the work of Antonio Faccilongo, gives us an intimate and almost personal insight into the lives of Palestinian families. Or he work that Mads Nissen documented in Brazil gives us a story of hope and resilience in the middle of a global pandemic.”

The 2021 WPP contest has received a large entry of more than 74,000 photos (from 4,315 photographers in 130 countries). An independent jury made up of 28 photography professionals selected the winners in eight categories: Contemporary Issues, General News, Environment, Long-Term Projects, Nature, Spot News, Sports, and Portraits.

The jury of the 2021 Photo Contest selected Mads Nissen’s photograph The First Embrace as the World Press Photo of the Year, and Habibi by Antonio Faccilongo as the World Press Photo Story of the Year.

This WPP Exhibition has been travelling worldwide over the year.

The exhibition guided tour and side events

On behalf of the Netherlands Embassy, our partner - Matca, will co-organize a series of side events including the special workshop: ‘Hanoi on the go with Maika Elan & Phuong Hoang.’ A series of exhibition guided tours by MatCa experts will be organised at the following timeslots:

• 14h00 on Sunday, December 19^th, 2021
• 19h00 on Friday, December 24^th, 2021
• 10:00 on Saturday, December 25^th, 2021

For more information on the side events, visit: https://matca.vn