The 1839 Awards, named after the year photography was officially introduced to the world, continue to honor image-makers who push the boundaries of the medium. The 2025 edition marks another milestone, showcasing exceptional creativity from across 79 countries — the contest’s most global edition to date.
Founded to celebrate both tradition and innovation in fine art photography, the 1839 Awards highlight how visual storytelling continues to evolve. From the intimacy of portraiture to the urgency of photojournalism, this year’s winners offer a vivid portrait of contemporary photographic practice.
International Photographer and Discovery of the Year
The title of International Photographer of the Year was awarded to Jaime Travezan for Dream, a promotional project for fashion designer Ade Bakare. Travezan’s work merges high fashion and conceptual art, transforming visual style into emotional narrative.
The International Discovery of the Year went to Li Tung for Embodied Syntax, a striking composition in which three intertwined, headless figures blur the boundaries between body and construct. The series explores how consciousness, memory, and emotion shape the body as a language — poetic yet deeply human.
Gold Category Winners – A Global Lens on Humanity and Nature
Across multiple genres, the Gold Category Winners reveal photography’s capacity to document, critique, and inspire. Highlights include:
- Abdelrahman Alkahlout – The War on Gaza’s Children, a harrowing photojournalistic series revealing the human cost of conflict.
- Mauro De Bettio – Venice of Africa, a powerful portrait of resilience in Makoko, Lagos, where life unfolds on floating homes.
- Liz Obert – American Bodegónes, a still-life series inspired by classical painting that reflects on mortality and materialism.
- Philip Coburn – ContactSheet, Aftermath Genocide Rwanda GOMA, revisiting his coverage of the 1994 Rwandan genocide through film photography.
- Svetlana Fadeeva – Details, capturing the architectural dynamism of Qatar’s National Museum.
- Alexander Tasho – Blue Hour Guardian, a serene wildlife moment suspended between light and stillness.
These and dozens of other awardees demonstrate the incredible diversity of vision among today’s photographers — from aerial abstractions to intimate portraits, from conceptual experiments to stories rooted in environmental awareness.
Honoring Vision and Storytelling
Judged by a distinguished panel including representatives from the Whitney Museum of American Art, Phaidon Press, Vanity Fair, Christie’s, and Artsy, the 1839 Awards 2025 reaffirm photography’s central role in shaping how we see the world. Each image, whether political or poetic, offers a dialogue between artist and audience — a reminder of photography’s power to connect.
The 1839 Awards continue to position themselves as one of the most respected international competitions for fine art and documentary photographers, bridging continents, disciplines, and generations through the shared language of imagery.
For the full list of winners, visit www.1839awards.com.
