IPE 163 Awards

Over 8,000 images were submitted to the International Photography Exhibition 163, and an impressive selection of work was shortlisted and reviewed as prints by our guest panel. This year, Monica Alcazar-Duarte, Sebah Chaudhry, Joy Gregory HonFRPS and Michael Pritchard had the challenging task of selecting the exhibition and award winners from an incredible shortlist of strong print submissions.

We are delighted to congratulate French-Polish photographer Tim Franco for his work titled Unperson - Portraits of North Korean Defectors, and South Korean photographer KyeongJun Yang, for work from his series, Men Don't Cry, who have been awarded the highest accolades this year.

The exhibition will be on view at RPS Gallery, Bristol in April 2022.

IPE Award | Under 30s Award | IPE Home

Tim Franco

IPE Award

French-Polish photographer, Tim Franco, has been awarded the IPE 163 Award for his series Unperson - Portraits of North Korean Defectors. In 2016, Tim relocated to South Korea and began to develop this series of work over three years. On winning the award Tim say's:

"I am really humbled that my work has been selected for the IPE award, especially after seeing all the amazing work that was submitted this year!"

The exhibition and awards are selected anonymously, and the Selection Panel all gravitated towards these strong portraits during the selection.

Michael Pritchard says, "Striking and direct, with a disconcerting colour palette to them, these photographic portraits unnerve the viewer, but allow us to stare unchallenged. They leave more questions unanswered about their subjects’ identity and what their futures may be."

Discover more of Tim's work

KyeongJun Yang

Under 30s Award

KyeongJun Yang, from South Korea has been awarded the Under 30s IPE Award for his series Men Don't Cry. On winning the award KyeongJun says:

"I am deeply honored to win the award and I am thankful to everyone who appreciates my Dad’s story."

KyeongJun born and raised in Jinhae, South Korea, moved to the United States when he was 18 and studied journalism and philosophy at the University of Texas at Austin. His works focus on how individuals and small communities are impacted by society and culture.

Men Don't Cry is a personal and intimate series of work looking at family relationships and emotions.

Discover more of KyeongJun's work