If you’re in London, don’t miss the latest days of the Taylor Wessing Photo Portrait Prize exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery. On view through February 16th, the show puts together the work of over fifty photographers from around the world who’ve used their lenses to portray people of all walks of life, thus reflecting the rich diversity of our societies, as well as reflect on notions of beauty, motherhood, identity, family, and community.
Like every year for the past seventeen years, the British Museum hosts this group show where some of the most interesting names in photography compete for a prize including money and prestige. This year, London-based photographer and former METAL collaborator Steph Wilson won the first place with a raw portrait titled Sonam, taken from her series Ideal Mother. Vulnerable yet strong, her image is as striking as it is beautiful — a woman wearing a fake mustache because she’s a wig-maker and wants to show her profession as well as embrace her masculine features. Steph Wilson’s series Ideal Mother seeks to document “unconventional and ‘imperfect’ examples of motherhood,” the NPG explains, and this portrait captures that perfectly.
The other winners include Australian photographer Adam Ferguson for his series Big Sky, which took him ten years long. Through all this time, he went into the Northern Territory and Western Australia to depict the impact of globalisation and climate change, in addition to the colonial legacy which underpins modern Australia. Through the juxtaposition of native people and idealised backgrounds, Ferguson reflects on the destruction that some humans inflict on others.
The third prize went to Dutch photographer Tjitske Sluis. Her moving series Out of Love, Out of Necessity documents her mother during the final stages of her life, while Sluis took care of her and bonded with her knowing that the end was coming rather sooner than later. Through this heartbreaking series, the artist portrays the last, fleeting moments with her mother to create long-lasting memories, but even more, reflects on the profound care crisis that the Netherlands (and almost all of Europe) is going through.
Besides the three winners, many other photographers are part of the exhibit. Some of the names we think you shouldn’t miss include Nick Van TTiem, Shen Wei, Latoya Okuneye, Mayita Mendez, Drew Gardner, Hidhir Badaruddin, Kovi Konowiecki, Francisco Rosas Rangel, Kun Song, Sam Wright, Ingvar Kenner, Patarit Pinyopiphat, or Jasmeen Patheja, among others.
Pintupi-Luritja Lutheran Pastor Simon Dixon by Adam Ferguson from the series Big Sky, 2023
All Eyes On Me by Latoya Okuneye, 2024
Cousin sisters Shauna and Bridget Perdjert by Adam Ferguson from the series Big Sky, 2023
Ardhnarishwar by Tanmay Saxena from the series Postcard Inlandia, 2023
Bridget by Claire Brand, 2023
A Broke Boys story by Nick van Tiem from the series It was never meant to be easy, 2024
The exhibition Taylor Wessing Photo Portrait Prize is on view through February 16th at the National Portrait Gallery, St. Martin's Pl, London WC2H 0HE, UK.