6x6 Asia: Second cycle

6x6 talents from Asia announced

6x6 Asia talents, Second cycle

6x6 Asia talents, Second cycle

The World Press Photo Foundation is proud to announce the results of the second cycle of the 6x6 Global Talent Program in Asia, the last region of the current cycle. The six selected visual storytellers are:


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Selection committee

Nominations for visual storytellers from Asia were made by the international community of 6x6 nominators. From the nominees’ submitted portfolios, a selection committee picked six visual storytellers to join the pool of 6x6 talents from around the world.

The online selection committee comprised: Dalia Khamissy, Lebanon, photographer; Daniel Boetker-Smith, Australia, educator, writer, curator, publisher, and photographer; Duan Yuting, China, founder, Lianzhou Foto Festival; Rahaab Allana, India, curator and publisher, Alkazi Foundation for the Arts; and Saiyna Bashir, Pakistan, photojournalist.

Nominator quotes

On nominating Debsuddha Banerjee, Showkat Nanda, India, photographer, and 6x6 nominator, said:
“Debsuddha Banerjee's serious documentary approach in dealing with environmental issues helps him produce images with a strange hauntingness. His compositions that look almost artistic strike a balance with the content in them. His personal project about his aunts has a deep sense of intimacy and depicts universal human connection in a dignified way.”

On nominating Deepti Asthana, Søren Pagter, Denmark, head of department of photojournalism, Danish School of Media and Journalism, and 6x6 nominator, said:
“Deepti Asthana's stories focus on women in her home country, India. [...] In all her projects, Deepti Asthana manages to create a narrative where the color tones fit with the story. Her visuals are challenging and open for interpretations without losing the core of the story. Deepti Asthana's visual style varies from project to project, but is always very coherent and she has a strong sense of the use of color as a part of the story telling.”

On nominating Mengwen Cao, Sangsuk Sylvia Kang, South Korea, photographer and assistant photo editor, TIME, and 6x6 nominator, said:
“Mengwen Cao is a photographer passionate about the space of race, gender, and cultural identity. A former user experience designer, Cao isn’t afraid to experiment and weave their photographic projects with moving images, audio recordings, video, and data visualizations. Their work shows their empathetic viewpoint and an interest in pushing journalism in new directions.”

On nominating Parisa Azadi, Erika Larsen, United States, photographer, and 6x6 nominator, said:
“Parisa Azadi is one of the hardest working young photographers I know. She is passionate, engaged, gentle and profound. Her work opens a door to intimate moments that only a trusted person can witness. She approaches these moments with respect and intensity.”

On nominating Santanu Dey, Saiful Huq Omi, Bangladesh, photographer, filmmaker, educator, activist, and 6x6 nominator, said:
“Santanu Dey is a photographer who photographs with his heart, who goes beyond what you see with your eyes. He loves to photograph what doesn't exist in reality, he photographs history.”

On nominating Sutirtha Chatterjee, Salil Bera, India, deputy photo editor, The Week, and 6x6 nominator, said:
“Sutirtha Chatterjee is working on the subject of people with albinism, who are actually blind in a different way. His exploration of their feelings towards nature is very fascinating.”

Prizes

In addition to exhibition opportunities, the work of the six talents will also be published and shared on the World Press Photo Foundation’s platforms, including a feature on our online magazine Witness for each of the talents. The 6x6 talents also receive an automatic nomination for World Press Photo’s prestigious Joop Swart Masterclass, provided they meet the nomination criteria.

For all questions about the program, please contact 6x6@worldpressphoto.org