{"id":691225,"date":"2026-03-29T23:59:32","date_gmt":"2026-03-29T23:59:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/691225\/"},"modified":"2026-03-29T23:59:32","modified_gmt":"2026-03-29T23:59:32","slug":"photo-contest-winners-highlight-womens-voices-in-photography","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/691225\/","title":{"rendered":"Photo Contest Winners Highlight Women\u2019s Voices in Photography"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"A<\/p>\n

All About Photo (AAP) has revealed the winners of AAP Magazine 55: Women<\/a>, a special edition dedicated to highlighting the work of women photographers from around the world. This issue emphasizes both artistic vision and the lived experiences of women, continuing AAP\u2019s mission to amplify unheard voices.<\/p>\n

\"ASilvia Alessi, Courtesy All About Photo First Place: Silvia Alessi and The Cut <\/p>\n

The top prize was awarded to Silvia Alessi<\/a> of Italy for her series The Cut, which explores hair as a symbol of control, identity, and resistance. The award-winning image portrays a young Afghan girl who fled alone to Pakistan, embodying both fragility and strength. Alessi\u2019s long-term project also documents women working in secret in beauty salons under Taliban rule and Afghan refugee women using hair and beauty practices as a subtle means of learning and self-expression. By blending staged and documentary photography, her work highlights the body as a site of negotiation, where freedom is quietly asserted.<\/p>\n

\"AnNatalya Saprunova, Courtesy All About Photo Second Place: Natalya Saprunova and Boreal People <\/p>\n

Natalya Saprunova, representing France and Russia, earned second place for her series Boreal People. Her featured image captures Galina Lazareva, an 80-year-old Evenki craftswoman in Yakutia, Eastern Siberia, who single-handedly cares for her great-granddaughter. Through traditional embroidery and handmade garments, Lazareva passes on ancestral knowledge, connecting generations and preserving cultural identity. Saprunova\u2019s work emphasizes the transmission of heritage and the resilience embedded in everyday domestic life.<\/p>\n

\"AAngelika Kollin, Courtesy All About Photo Third Place: Angelika Kollin and You Are My Mother <\/p>\n

Third place went to Angelika Kollin of Estonia for her series You Are My Mother. The portrait of Cynthia depicts a matriarch at the center of her family in Africa, whose quiet presence holds together the lives of children, grandchildren, and community. Kollin\u2019s photography brings attention to the invisible labor of women, showing how their care and stability form the backbone of familial and social structures.<\/p>\n

Merit Awards: Global Perspectives on Women\u2019s Lives <\/p>\n

AAP Magazine 55: Women also features a Merit Awards Gallery showcasing exceptional work from photographers around the world. Indian photographer Somenath Mukhopadhyay presents Colorful Burden, staged images highlighting the relentless daily labor of women collecting water in China Clay mines. Italian photographer Ezio Gianni Murzi revisits Carmelo Hospital in Mozambique, documenting HIV-positive mothers and children, and the long-term impact of compassionate medical care in under-resourced communities. In Romania, Ron Cooper\u2019s portraits of elderly women living alone in rural villages emphasize resilience, tradition, and the sustaining role of faith.<\/p>\n

Other contributors explore themes ranging from urban life to personal identity. B Jane Levine captures candid street portraits in New York City, reflecting fleeting moments of connection. Aline Smithson elevates Los Angeles immigrants through staged portraits that recognize dignity, heritage, and transnational experiences. Donna Gordon\u2019s In the Garden series combines portraiture with landscape to explore alter-egos and the evolving rights of women. Sebastian Sardi documents young women laboring in the brick kilns of Kathmandu, highlighting physical endurance and socioeconomic challenges.<\/p>\n

\"AnJustin Roque, Courtesy All About Photo \"AnJelisa Peterson, Courtesy All About Photo \"BlackIngetje Tadros, Courtesy All About Photo \"AEzio Gianni Murzi, Courtesy All About Photo \"BlackDonna Gordon, Courtesy All About Photo \"AnRon Cooper, Courtesy All About Photo \"AClark James Mishler, Courtesy All About Photo \"ACheryl Clegg, Courtesy All About Photo \"AB Jane Levine, Courtesy All About Photo \"ABeth Stahn, Courtesy All About Photo \"AAlain Schroeder, Courtesy All About Photo Personal Narratives and Identity <\/p>\n

The collection also includes deeply personal explorations of the female body, trauma, and identity. Leonie van der Helm\u2019s Naked with the Truth treats the body as a living archive shaped by inherited histories. Oksana Zhila\u2019s self-portraits question identity and vulnerability after migration, while Leonor Benito de la Lastra experiments with photographic materiality, presenting images as fragments of lived experience. Cheryl Clegg examines the ongoing influence of Title IX through intimate portraits, connecting policy with human stories across generations. Ingetje Tadros highlights the cultural adornments of Fulani girls, reflecting lineage and continuity, while Mary Dondero\u2019s digital montages explore patterns of harm in layered visual narratives.<\/p>\n

Every image in this issue, from Beth Stahn\u2019s Grandma\u2019s Jello to Valentina Sinis\u2019 The Last Butterflies, and from Jelisa Peterson\u2019s Beauty, Dignity and Strength: Women of Mozambique to Clark James Mishler\u2019s Portrait-a-Day project, contributes to a broader conversation about visibility, resilience, and empowerment. Photographers Oscar Gonz\u00e1lez, Mandy Ross, and Justin Roque further explore cultural heritage, ritual, and memory across Cuba, India, and France.<\/p>\n

\"ASebastian Sardi, Courtesy All About Photo \"AOksana Zhila, Courtesy All About Photo \"ANina Nelson, Courtesy All About Photo \"AMary Dondero, Courtesy All About Photo \"AMandy Ross, Courtesy All About Photo \"ALeonor Benito de la lastra, Courtesy All About Photo \"TwoValentina Sinis, Courtesy All About Photo \"FourSomenath Mukhopadhyay, Courtesy All About Photo \"AAline Smithson, Courtesy All About Photo Celebrating Vision and Impact <\/p>\n

The top three winners received a cash prize of $1,000 each, and all winning photographs are prominently featured in the printed edition of AAP Magazine 55: Women. Together, the selected works offer a broad view of contemporary photography, spanning documentary, portraiture, and conceptual approaches while reflecting a wide range of personal and cultural perspectives.<\/p>\n

By bringing these projects into a single publication, All About Photo<\/a> continues its commitment to elevating distinct visual voices and fostering a space where meaningful conversations around authorship, visibility, and the evolving role of women in photography can take shape.<\/p>\n

Image credits:<\/strong> All About Photo, Individual artists as credited<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"All About Photo (AAP) has revealed the winners of AAP Magazine 55: Women, a special edition dedicated to…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":691226,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[32],"tags":[173545,289587,289588,648,1032,4315,16289,1033,171,289589,91018,289590,67,132,68,289591],"class_list":["post-691225","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-aap","tag-allaboutphoto","tag-angelikakollin","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-competition","tag-contest","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-natalyasaprunova","tag-photocontest","tag-silviaalessi","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-us","tag-womenwinners"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116315185644194329","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/691225","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=691225"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/691225\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/691226"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=691225"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=691225"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=691225"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}