The World Photography Organisation has unveiled the shortlisted photographers in the Student and Youth competitions of the Sony World Photography Awards 2024.

The Student competition shortlist is a selection of bodies of work by 10 students at leading higher education institutions. This year’s competition invited students to enter a series of five to 10 images in response to the brief Home. The shortlisted projects highlight the student photographers’ diverse perspectives on place, community, identity and belonging, showing the nuanced stories and conversations they engage with as they develop their practices. The list of successful entrants is as follows:

  • Brayan Enriquez – Georgia State University, Ernest G Welch School of Art and Design, USA;
  • Frederik Rüegger – Ostkreuzschule für Fotografie, Germany;
  • Gaoge Ouchen – Communication University of Zhejiang, China Mainland;
  • Gaston Zilberman – Motivarte, Argentina;
  • Juan David Aguirre – Universidad EAFIT, Colombia;
  • Kayin Luys – LUCA School of Arts Sint Lukas, Brussels, Belgium;
  • Kazi Arifujjaman – Counter Foto – a Center for Visual Arts, Bangladesh;
  • Makaziwe Radebe – Michaelis School of Fine Art, University of Cape Town, South Africa;
  • Siphosethu Sanelisiwe Sikhosana – University of Pretoria, South Africa; and
  • Yufei Ma from China Mainland – School of Visual Arts, USA.

The Youth competition shortlist comprises the works of 10 photographers aged 19 and under who were invited to respond to the brief Through Your Eyes. Some of the entrants reflected on their personal experiences of the natural world and environment, while others explored questions of identity and individuality. Joyce Xu (18 years old), the only Australian in the list, took a studio self-portrait in a moment of reflection. She described the image as follows: In June 2023, I took this self-portrait in a photo studio. I was in an introspective mood, grappling with an inner turmoil, torn between my connection to Chinese culture and tradition, and my hope to liberate myself from self-imposed constraints linked to my heritage. This image represents a quest for belonging, adaptation, and identity in unfamiliar lands.


Self-portrait by Joyce Xu. © Joyce Xu, Australia, Shortlist, Youth Competition, Sony World Photography Awards 2024

She is joined by the following entrants: Afiq Sharkawi, Malaysia; Chengchen Wang, China Mainland; Daniel Murray, UK; Isaac Friend, UK; Kas Christiaens, Belgium; River Lewis-Gosch, USA; Shayna Cuenca, USA; Sebastián Fernández Lora, Spain and Zy Grei Zander M. Esperanza, Philippines.

The overall winners in the Student, Youth, Open and Professional competitions of the Sony World Photography Awards 2024 will be announced on 18 April 2024. Click here for more information about upcoming announcements and winners.