A series of pared-back industrial images has won this year’s Minimalist Photography Awards. Founded just three years ago the contest has quickly become a highlight for simple, stylish and surreal photography.
What is minimalist photography? The contest seems a little reticent to clearly define the aesthetic. Jury member Mick Moore, from the British Journal of Photography, suggests the array of images in the contest may be diverse, but the lack of "visual noise" is a unifying factor.
“Contained within the Minimalist Photography Awards are a set of artists who refuse to be overwhelmed by the 'visual noise' that surrounds them and instead find those moments of poetry, order and the sublime which gives this competition its strength,” says Moore.
Spanning 12 categories the contest presents an assortment of minimalist styles, from excitingly abstract compositions generated from flocks of birds, to the compelling shapes of swimming pools captured from above. Australian photographer Allen Koppe won overall Photographer of the Year for a concrete-hued series titled On Route.
George McLeod’s series titled Ignition is a particular highlight. Taking 2nd Place in the Abstract category, McLeod’s series was inspired by East Asian Sumi ink drawings.
“I wanted to find a photographic way of producing intricately detailed, black and white images,” McLeod explains. “Capturing these images at a speed of 1/8000th of a second, a side of fire is revealed that, previous to the invention of photography, was always just beyond reach, regardless of the countless hours humans have spent gazing into it.”
Other highlights include Alessandro Gallo’s examination of shapes in the San Cataldo cemetery, Rosario Civello’s Landscape category winning high-contrast image of a tree in a square field, and Timo Lemmetti’s beautifully composed shot of the Moon rising up next to a bent pole in a fence.
Take a look through our gallery for more highlights from this year’s Minimalist Photography Awards, and check out the winners from 2020 and 2019.
Source: Minimalist Photography Awards