War and the climate emergency take centre stage in this year’s edition of the world’s best journalistic photographs at Portimão’s old fish market.
The World Press Photo exhibition is back in Portimão between July 29 and August 20, in the Antiga Lota (old fish market) and adjacent area. The winning images from the most recent international photography competition tell impactful stories that underscore the effects of war on civilians and the climate emergency, as documented by the media in 2023.
The competition includes images from Africa, Asia, Europe, North and Central America, South America, Southeast Asia, and Oceania. Each region is divided into four categories: Singles, Stories, Long-Term Projects, and Open Format.
Negro, Argentina. Nahuel (22) was shot in the back during a raid by government forces on Indigenous activists in November 2017. He was supporting Mapuche groups who had occupied ancestral territories in Patagonia. In 2023, five members of an elite police squad were convicted of his murder.
The winners of the World Press Photo 2024 regional contest, including honourable mentions, are photographers from 24 countries: Argentina, Australia, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Canada, China, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Myanmar, Palestine, Peru, Philippines, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United States, and Venezuela.
The exhibition, showcasing images of important news events such as conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine, migration, and themes of family and dementia, is set to open at 18h30 on July 28.
They are stories told through a lens of despair and hunger, war and loss, but also perseverance and courage, love and dreams.
The 24 regional winners and six honourable mentions were chosen by an independent jury out of more than 61,062 entries from 3,851 photographers from 130 countries.
Four global winners were selected: Photograph of the Year – Mohammed Salem, Reuters / ‘A Palestinian woman embraces the niece’s body”; Story of the Year – Lee-Ann Olwage, Geo / «Valim – babena»; Long-Term Project – Alejandro Cegarra, The New York Times/Bloomberg / «The Two Walls»; Open Format – Julia Kochetova / «War is Personal».
The winning photographers all have a personal connection to their subjects, enabling them to convey a profound sense of hope, empathy, and compassion in their work.
A Palestinian Woman Embraces the Body of Her Niece.
The cream of world photojournalism
Founded in 1955 in the Netherlands, World Press Photo is a non-profit, non-governmental organisation that promotes photojournalism, freedom of information, and expression. It organises various events focusing on the most prestigious photojournalism and documentary photography competition.
It is worth remembering that, at the invitation of Associação Cultural Música XXI, Portimão was continuously part of the World Press Photo global tour between 1999 and 2011. In several editions, it was the first Portuguese city to exhibit the winning photos and to host many of the winning photographers of the competition.
Cities like Amsterdam, Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro, Shanghai, Brisbane, Zutphen, Knokke-Heist, Auckland, Bellinzona, Montreal, Eindhoven, São Paulo, Hamburg, Lodi, Dortmund, and Barcelona are included in the World Press Photo 2024 exhibition schedule, along with many more.
The images in the former Lota building and adjacent space can be viewed free of charge from July 29 to August 20, between 18h00 and midnight. Info: portugalresident
More information can be found here.
