“1839 Awards Unveils Impressive Winners of the 2024 Photographer of the Year Competition”
# Discovering the Grace and Complexity of Contemporary Photography: Highlights from the 2024 1839 Awards
Photography stands as a global art form, skillfully capturing ephemeral emotions, unexplored vistas, and intriguing narratives. The annual **1839 Awards**, named for the significant year that marked the advent of photography, continues to celebrate the deep traditions of this art form while embracing its growth. The 2024 iteration attracted submissions from over **60 nations**, highlighting its worldwide relevance. With 29 categories divided into Professional and Non-Professional competitions, the awards showcase the varied nature of photography as both a means of storytelling and a medium of expression.
This year’s honorees, spanning from experienced experts to budding artists, have exhibited remarkable creativity and technical finesse. From dreamlike portraits to the subtle traces of abandoned places, the recognized images reveal photography’s limitless capability to elicit emotions, ignite curiosity, and transform perceptions. Below, we explore some of the standout entries, including the acclaimed works of Logan White and Matthew Portch, while delving into the stories and artistic concepts that shape these images.
—
## **Professional Winner: “Hearts Content Road, Gianna” by Logan White**
Logan White was awarded the title of **International Photographer of the Year** for their enchanting image, *Hearts Content Road, Gianna*. This captivating portrait series, taken in upstate New York, employs visually poetic and surreal arrangements to delve into the dual nature of imagination. White’s creations encourage observers to reflect on how fantasies, while providing escapism and thrill, also encompass nuances of doubt and complexity.
By ingeniously utilizing *trompe l’oeil* techniques, White blurs the distinction between illusion and reality, expanding the limits of conventional portraiture. Their talent in merging narrative and artistry into one frame emphasizes why they are celebrated as a trailblazer in contemporary photographic expression.
—
## **Non-Professional Discovery: “Buried Car, CA” by Matthew Portch**
Contributing to the excitement was **Matthew Portch**, a Non-Professional participant, who was named **International Photographer and Discovery of the Year** for *Buried Car, CA*. This haunting landscape captures an abandoned vehicle enveloped by the passage of time and nature in California’s desolate fringes. The photograph is part of Portch’s series “*Lost America*,” which evokes feelings of melancholy and nostalgia by documenting forsaken spaces that seem frozen in time.
Portch’s minimalist setup, paired with his use of natural lighting and muted colors, prompts viewers to contemplate themes of transience, memory, and the flow of time. It serves as a haunting yet captivating look into landscapes that remain disconnected from the frenzied contemporary world.
—
## **Remarkable Professional Winners**
Other winners within the Professional categories demonstrated photography’s power to reinterpret ordinary moments and narrate meaningful tales. A few highlights include:
1. **“Cold Square” by Dominik Gottwald (Film: Analog)**
Gottwald embraced the limitations of his surroundings in the Arctic settlement of Longyearbyen, where polar bears restricted human activity. By concentrating his lens on a solitary vibrant square, he crafted a series of minimalist yet resonant visuals that echo themes of isolation and innovation.
2. **“A Dog’s Life” by Alicia Rius (Domestic Animals)**
Rius’s portrayal of dogs alongside their personal treasures provides an intimate glimpse into the lives of our four-legged friends. By capturing objects that represent their personalities, she sheds light on the bond shared between humans and animals.
3. **“Wishes” by Geert Weggen (Wildlife)**
Geert Weggen’s depiction of a red squirrel blowing dandelion seeds stands as a playful yet meaningful reminder of the beauty nestled in nature’s smallest moments.
4. **“Circus” by Algis Griskevicius (Conceptual)**
Griskevicius’s *Cirkas* series fuses the whimsical with the real, showcasing surreal images that challenge gravity while intertwining playful sculptures with human figures.
5. **“Whale Dreams” by Remuna Beca (Underwater)**
Capturing the graceful essence of a baby humpback whale floating upside down in the South Pacific, Beca’s underwater photography evokes wonder and highlights the fragile beauty of oceanic life.
—
## **Uplifting Non-Professional Winners**
The Non-Professional competition also highlighted emerging talent and innovative viewpoints:
1. **“By the Ocean” by Mykola Myronov (Film: Analog)**
Myronov examines themes of vulnerability and equality, portraying the ocean as a neutral force where earthly concerns fade away, revealing only the unrefined self.
2. **“I.D.” by Evan Murphy (People-Portrait-Storytelling)**
Murphy’s series delves into the narratives of queer youth as they navigate identity, challenge societal norms, and embrace self-liberation through evocative, story-driven portraits.
3. **“Jump!” by Yevhen Kostiuk (