CitiesToBe Photo Award 2023
The CitiesToBe Photo Award 2023 is the second edition of a biennial international urban photography contest for images that portray cities and their challenging, yet inspiring complexity.
Organized by Barcelona-based consultancy firm Anteverti, the contest is free to enter and open to photographic creators from all over the world whose work show or reflect on cities and urban life. Any individual over the age of 18 may submit his/her work until February 12, 2023, which may be conventional photographic work or artistic work that uses photography as a medium.
Out of all the submitted images, 50 photographs will be shortlisted and announced as finalists on March 17, 2023. Prizes include an Acquisitive Prize of €1,500 for the winning image, 10 Honorable Mentions and having the submitted work showcased through the contest’s online channels and through an edition’s book to be edited after the competition is resolved. The Final Decision of the contest will be announced on April 20, 2023.
The 1st Edition of the CitiesTobe Photo Award, launched in December 2019, received 533 images from more than 60 countries in all continents. ‘Vorkuta’, by Russian photographer Roman Demyanenko, was awarded with the first prize.
If there’s something that defines the last century in the world, that is the progressive concentration of people in cities. Whether fleeing from war and conflict, pursuing a better future, or simply following the inertia of progress, cities have been giving shelter and birth to more and more people without restraint. Today, the world is more urban than ever before, and this is increasing every year. As a result, cities have acquired a fundamental role in contemporary global reality.
The DNA of cities is composed of many exciting things, such as cultural diversity, creativity, innovation, entrepreneurship… At the same time,cities are a manifestation of our world’s main challenges: according to UN Habitat, they consume 78 % of the world’s energy and produce more than 60 % of greenhouse gas emissions. They are the place where social differences and segregation are most evident, and where cultural and identity conflicts converge. In short, cities are highly complex ecosystems comprising a multiplicity of layers and, most importantly, they are the canvas where our future will be created.
This exciting combination of facts around urban realities is what moves us at CitiesToBe and Anteverti, and that is why we have decided to organize the CitiesToBe Photo Award: a biennial contest for images that portray cities and their challenging, yet inspiring complexity.
Who can participate?
— Any individual over the age of 18 may participate in the CitiesToBe Photo Award 2023, regardless of their geographical location or nationality.
— Only one photograph per person will be accepted.
— Participation is free.
What images can be submitted?
— The CitiesToBe Photo Award is a contest of images that show or reflect on cities and urban life, in any of their complex forms and aspects.
— The photographic images can be conventional photographic work or artistic work that uses photography as a medium, without restrictions on techniques or procedures. Images may belong to a series of photographs or be part of a photographic project, and may have been previously published.
— Images that have already been previously rewarded are exempt to be submitted.
— All images must have been taken or created after 2018.
— Participants must hold the rights of the image they submit.
How to submit an image?
The photographs must be submitted in JPG format (preferably with Adobe RGB 1998 colour profile), measuring up to 2000 pixels on the longest side and with a maximum size of 5 MB, without the addition of frames, borders or photo captions.Prizes
— One first acquisitive prize for the amount of 1,500 euros to the winning photograph — which will become part of Anteverti’s urban photography private collection.
— 10 honorable mentions to the finalist images of the CitiesToBe Photo Award
— The winning image and the 10 honorable mentions will be included in the CitiesToBe Photo Award 2023 edition’s book, aimed at acknowledging the work of its authors. The book will also feature the shortlisted images of the contest.
Prizes
— One first acquisitive prize for the amount of 1,500 euros to the winning photograph — which will become part of Anteverti’s urban photography private collection.
— 10 honorable mentions to the finalist images of the CitiesToBe Photo Award
— The winning image and the 10 honorable mentions will be included in the CitiesToBe Photo Award 2023 edition’s book, aimed at acknowledging the work of its authors. The book will also feature the shortlisted images of the contest.
Timeline
December 20th, 2022: Opening date of the call for submission of images
February 12th, 2023: Closing date of the call
March 17th, 2023: Announcement of the 50 finalist images
April 20th, 2023: Announcement of the winning image and the 10 honorable mentions of the contest