HÀ NỘI — The fourth iteration World Press Photo Exhibition in Hà Nội, showcasing the winners of 2021’s World Press Photo Contest will open to the public at the side-walk of Hoàn Kiếm Lake from 17 to 26 December 2021.

The event is organized by the Netherlands Embassy in Việt Nam, with support of the Hà Nội People's Committee.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Việt Nam, H.E. Mrs. Elsbeth Akkerman said each of the images shown told a story about the lives of ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances, after living with COVID-19 for almost 2 years.

“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 of events and developments that matter. Moreover, it does so in the most effective way since a photograph eliminates boundaries of culture and language,” she added.

The exhibition attracts the public's attention with a variety of photo themes. VNS Photo Bảo Ngọc

Also at the event, Martha Echevarria, Representative of World Press Photo Foundation shared: “By bringing these stories to you, we are hoping to create a sense of connection and solidarity, because it is through these stories that everyone in Hà Nội 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 the work that Mads Nissen documented in Brazil gives us a story of hope and resilience in the middle of a global pandemic.”

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.

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. VNS