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EyeEm Photography Festival & Awards 2017

Bringing together people from across the creative and technology industries for a series of talks, workshops and portfolio reviews, the EyeEm Photography Festival & Awards has established itself as the leading forum for discussion and debate amongst innovators in these spheres. Now in its fourth year, the festival will run from the 15th to 17th of September at the creative art space Radialsystem V in Berlin.
“With the EyeEm Photo Festival, we aim to bring together those revolutionizing visual communication, in the categories of technology, art or photography. We want the Festival to be a guide to what’s next: what photographers and those in the visual communication industries can expect for the future,” explains Florian Meissner, co-founder & CEO of EyeEm.

The Portraitist – David Schulman Taken in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Originating as an art project in 2011, focused on harnessing digital technology as a means to empower photographers across the world, EyeEm has grown into a photographic community of millions. Existing now as both a website and app, the platform utilises cutting-edge technology to organise submitted images and curate bespoke selections for individuals, global brands and agencies.
The festival is dedicated to providing a carefully-curated a roster of speakers and workshops which will educate attendees about the most exciting developments in visual communication. Meissner is excited to announce that this year’s event will feature technology experts in machine learning and AI, offering “guidance to creators on how to make the best of these new opportunities”.
The Photojournalist – Md. Enamul Kabir Taken in Bangladesh, India.
Showcasing creatives who use technology to enhance and inform their practice, the program also includes Mario Klingemann, the artist-in-residence at Google Arts & Culture. Building art-generated software by feeding photo, video and line drawings into a line of code, his work encapsulates how art and technology can come together to produce exciting new creative possibilities.
Other highlights include a talk from the “paparazzi of strangers”, photographer Daniel Arnold, who has used Instagram to showcase his acclaimed street-photography. And Mustafah Abdulaziz, whose long-term project WATER addresses the universal importance of this resource.
The Photojournalist – Ritesh Shukla Taken in Hanumanganj, India.
At the heart of the festival is the announcement of the EyeEm Photography Award winners. “We have come a long way, but for me it all comes back to celebrating the new talent that we discover every year. We want this to be a new stage for photography and empower the new generation of creators out there,” says Meissner.
With over 590,000 submissions from more than 88,000 entrants, the awards celebrate the best of contemporary photography over six categories, with prizes ranging from personal mentorship with a renowned photographer to an array of camera equipment. Judges include Anne Farrar, the director of photography at National Geographic Traveler, Clare Grafik, head of exhibitions at The Photographer’s Gallery, and last year’s winner of the Photographer of the Year award, Zacherie Rabehi.
The Great Outdoors – Masaki Sato Taken in Nagano, Japan.
The first-ever recipient of the EyeEm Photographer of the Year prize will also be returning to discuss what he’s done since winning in 2014. Awarded for his arresting portrait of a young boy with water streaming from his closed-eyes, fifteen-year old David Uzochukuwu went on to sign with Iconoclast Image and more recently gained attention for photographing Nike’s campaign with FKA Twigs.
“It’s nice to see the photographers we recognise continue to grow and accomplish big things in their work,” says  Meissner. One of EyeEm’s central aims is to support emerging talent through encouraging them embrace technology. Indeed, Meissner urges young photographers to do so, to help further their careers: “Technology is there to augment your creativity, not replace you!”
 
The EyeEm Photography Festival & Awards 2017 will run from the 15th to the 17th of September at the Radialsystem V in Berlin. You can learn more about the event and purchase tickets here, and find out more about the EyeEm community here.
Sponsored by EyeEm: This feature was made possible with the support of EyeEm. Please click here for more information on sponsored content funding at British Journal of Photography.