Calvert 22 Foundation and The Calvert Journal have announced the finalists for this year’s New East Photo Prize.
More than 700 photographers applied for the 2020 prize, which celebrates contemporary photography from Eastern Europe, the Balkans, Russia, and Central Asia.
The 11 finalists come from Albania, Georgia, Hungary, Poland, Russia, and Uzbekistan.
“It’s not only interesting to see which themes crop up about the New East, it’s also exciting to see the different ways in which artists tackle the same topics,” said Elena Anosova, a photographer and judge of the New East Photo Prize. “This edition showed where there are common, unifying concerns, and limitless ways of approaching them,” she added.
“Each of the finalists demonstrates a commitment to better understand the spaces they occupy, their environment, the people around them, and themselves,” said Liza Premiyak, Managing Editor of The Calvert Journal. “It’s rare that you get a chance to experience life with this sense of newness and unbridled curiosity — which has made this edition of New East Photo Prize so memorable.”
The winners of the prizes will be announced to the public on 10 November. They are in the race to get a £1,000 cash prize, a £500 voucher for photography equipment, and a mentorship award.
The finalists are:
Agnieszka Sejud, Hoax.
Alexey Vasilyev, Sakhawood.
András Ladocsi, Swallow.
Hassan Kurbanbaev, Logomania: Owning the World at Half Price.
Igor Elukov, The Book of Miracles.
Ilir Tsouko, Starting Over: From the Donbass to Chernobyl.
János R. Szabó, Stories along the Öreg-Túr River.
Justyna Górniak, Haytarma.
Lilith Matevosyan, I had left my home early in the morning.
Marina Istomina, Suffocation.
Tomasz Liboska, Turn Around.
Stay tuned for our interviews with each finalist over the coming weeks, and take a sneak peak into their projects below.