The Istanbul Photo Awards, an international news photography contest organized by Anadolu Agency (AA), opened its third exhibition on Monday commemorating its 10th anniversary in Brussels.
The exhibit, held at the SR Gallery, showcases award-winning works from this year’s contest.
The selection captures impactful moments from across the globe, including Israel’s ongoing attacks in Palestine, Türkiye’s devastating earthquake, Mexican crime syndicates, Afghan refugee camps, plastic pollution in Nigeria and elephants living in waste-filled habitats in Sri Lanka. Images from the world swimming championships in Japan, Wimbledon, social discrimination in India and migrant fatalities in Spanish waters are also featured.
The Istanbul Photo Awards received over 20,000 submissions this year. Photographs were evaluated in categories such as news, sports, environment, portrait and daily life, with both individual and series photos considered. A total of 32 photographers were awarded across 10 categories.
The exhibition, which will run until Nov. 18, attracted significant attention from the outset.
Octavian Lazar, a hotel manager visiting Brussels from Bucharest, Romania, said he attended with his wife, who is a painter, and found the works deeply moving. "We've ended up very impressed with everything with art on the walls here," Lazar told AA.
"They are incredible. Great pictures. Some of the subjects are very sad. I saw pictures related to wars and also nature, which is destroyed by people. Very sad but at the same time extremely beautiful."
Meliha Yesilot, education coordinator at the Turkish Maarif Foundation’s Brussels office, described the images as "permanent witnesses to global events."
Yesilot said the work by Palestinian photographer Mohammed Salem in which a Palestinian woman embraces the body of her 5-year-old niece, also selected as Photo of the Year, was particularly stirring.
"These photographs evoke different emotions within us, and it’s hard to keep our feelings in check," Yesilot said.
The 2024 contest was supported by Turkcell as the communication sponsor, Sony as the award sponsor, the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) as the international event sponsor and Turkish Airlines (THY) as the airline sponsor.