Sony World Photography Awards winning works on display in Milan, Italy

From June 6 to Sept. 29, the Museo Diocesano Carlo Maria Martini in Milan, Italy, presents an exhibition of the winning works from the Sony World Photography Awards, curated by Barbara Silbe. Now in their 17th year, the Sony World Photography Awards have become an annual event for photography enthusiasts. Prominent among the more than 160 photographs submitted in Milan by 52 authors is the work spiralkampagnen: Forced Contraception and Unintended Sterilization of Greenlandic Women by Juliette Pavy, a French photographer awarded the prestigious title of Photographer of the Year. Her documentary work focuses on the profound and lingering repercussions of the forced contraception and sterilization campaign against Greenlandic women imposed by Danish authorities during the 1960s and 1970s. Notable among the projects on display is Federico Scarchilli ’s flora series, the Italian winner of this edition, which triumphed in the Still Life category. Also on display are the works of the other Italian photographers who took second and third place in different categories of the Professional competition: Davide Monteleone (3rd place for Documentary, with the series Critical Minerals - Geography of Energy); Jean-Marc Caimi and Valentina Piccinni (2nd place for Environment, with the series Tropicalia); Maurizio Di Pietro (3rd place for Environment, with the series zero hunger); and Tommaso Pardini (3rd place for Sport, with the series surfing in Dakar). Also this year, sensitivity to environmental issues was underscored by the awarding of the Sustainability Prize, won by Kathleen Orlinsky (United States) with the series America’s First Wilderness. Orlinsky’s photographic project, which highlights the landscape, wildlife and people of the area known as the Gila Wilderness in southeastern New Mexico, will also be displayed as part of the Milan exhibition.

“We are happy to be able to bring the Sony World Photography Awards exhibition back to Italy,” says Stéphane Labrousse, Country Head of Sony in Italy, “Because we believe it is a unique opportunity to see the best of the international photographic production of the last year. And we are equally happy to be able to return to the Museo Diocesano, which, with its history and activities supporting art and photography, is certainly a point of reference for the city of Milan. The 2024 edition recorded the highest number of entries ever for the Professional competition, with more than 395,000 entries from more than 220 countries and territories. This confirms the strong international resonance of the prize, which gives space to topical issues such as sustainability and geopolitics, but also to sensitive topics such as family and social relations, and is more generally a snapshot of our time. And it does so by giving space and visibility to the widest pool of international talent, from professional photographers to students and young people entering this world. Each year we are struck by the variety of photographic styles represented and the passion with which the different photographers visually recount the challenges, joys and labors of Man. We are proud that also in this edition 5 Italian photographers have placed in the top 3 places in some categories of the Professional award, which testifies to the central role that photography plays in our country and the narrative ability of our photographers. As Sony, we are happy to be able to contribute to this art, not only with the continuous technological innovation made available to content creators, but also with the support that this award represents, especially in terms of global visibility for photographers and their work.”

“Climate change, exploitation of resources, inequality, sustainable development, the complex relationships that drive us...these are the great human themes being investigated by the winners of the most important international photography prize, for an edition that seems to emphasize the urgency of avoiding the dystopia of contemporary civilization and that will also be highlighted by the tour route I designed for the exhibition. By making us reflect on our mistakes, the authors stimulate our consciousness and encourage us to imagine possible futures, fulfilling one of the primary functions of their role, that of reminding us that beauty exists. Professional or emerging, equally valued by this exciting competition, they strive to bring into focus what we, unwitting spectators, sometimes do not even notice. Their stories, both anthropological and anthropic, provide a compass by which we can go deep and orient ourselves in the present time governed by wars, economic crises and decay of values, to understand our fellow human beings or those who are different, to return to that primary feeling of wonder in the face of the fragility of the world that will enable us to respect it,” stresses Barbara Silbe, journalist, co-founder and editor-in-chief of EyesOpen! Magazine and curator of the exhibition.

“The Museo Diocesano Carlo Maria Martini is pleased to host the Italian venue of the Sony World Photography Awards exhibition for the second year, continuing the proposal of exhibitions dedicated to photography as part of the cultural project that sees throughout the year an alternation of exhibitions dedicated to the big names of international photography and more circumscribed reviews dedicated to contemporary languages. As is also evidenced by the themes proposed in this review - such as sustainability, climate, social relations - photography lends itself particularly to the investigation of man and society that the Diocesan Museum, in line with its identity, intends to address in its proposals. We are happy to share with Sony a part of this path, in the months when, also thanks to the evening openings of the cloister, the Museum is particularly frequented by a young audience,” says Nadia Righi, director of the Museo Diocesano Carlo Maria Martini.

Practical information

Admission: Tuesday - Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Biglects: Full 9€ / reduced 7€

Sony World Photography Awards winning works on display in Milan, Italy

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