London, United Kingdom 22ⁿᵈ July 2021 – For the 32ⁿᵈ year, Canon Europe is proud to announce it will partner with Visa pour l’image, one of the world’s leading photojournalism festivals, during the Pro Week – from 30ᵗʰ August – 4ᵗʰ September 2021. Celebrating the best in photojournalism, the long-standing partnership highlights Canon’s ongoing commitment to the craft of photojournalism and the photographers that capture some of the most important chapters in our history. From students learning new skills, to professionals exploring the world we live in, Canon’s alliance with Visa pour l’image champions emerging talent and creative storytelling with exciting initiatives, from the Canon Female Photojournalist Grant and Canon Video Grant through to Canon’s Student Development Programme.
The very best of female photojournalism
For the twenty-first year in a row, Canon and Visa pour l’image will be presenting the Canon Female Photojournalist Grant to an outstanding photographer in recognition of her contribution to photojournalism. The 2021 recipient, Acacia Johnson, will receive €8,000 to carry out her project in Alaska – To Know The Earth from Above: The Bush Pilots Connecting Rural Alaska. Currently, only 20 per cent of Alaska is accessible by road, and dozens of its remote settlements, largely Alaskan Native communities, rely on bush aircraft for essential services, including food, medical care, and emergency transport. Starting in her hometown of Anchorage, the Grant allows Johnson to put this community into light through large-format portraits of pilots with their aircraft and aerial photographs of aircraft in flight in the Alaskan landscape.
Both Johnson and last year’s recipient of the Female Photojournalist Grant, Turkish photographer Sabiha Çimen (Hafiz: Guardians of the Qur'an), will be showcasing their bodies of work at Visa pour l’image 2022.
Canon’s Video Grant
Celebrating creative documentary making and recognising the best emerging talent, Canon together with Visa pour l’image are pleased to be presenting Camille Millerand with the second Canon Video Grant for a short film documentary. Millerand will use the €8,000 funding to work on his project The Invisibles, which will focus on illegal workers who are an essential part of France’s economic activity – he will also receive the loan of pioneering Canon professional video equipment to support his work.
The documentary will be screened at the 2022 festival alongside the work of 2020’s inaugural recipient of the Canon Video Grant – French-Swiss photographer and filmmaker Michaël Zumstein – who’s short documentary, Bangui la coquette, looks at the organisation of Miss Central African Republic.
Inspiring future photojournalists
2021 sees the fifth edition of the Canon Student Development Programme – dedicated to those looking to pursue a career in photography. Running during Pro Week from 1st – 4th September, and being held digitally for the second time, Canon has offered over 200 students from across Europe, Middle East and Africa the opportunity to participate in this intensive developmental programme. This initiative aims to enhance their skills and advance students’ careers by introducing them to some of the top professionals in the industry, through lectures and portfolio reviews. There will be 21 professional photographers, including Canon Ambassadors – Jérôme Sessini, Marco Longari, Muhammed Muheisen, Aïda Muluneh and Magnus Wennman – and acclaimed industry professionals reviewing student portfolios. Some of the photo editors and curators participating include: Fiona Shields (The Guardian), Chiara Bardelli Nonino (Vogue Italia), Whitney Richardson (The New York Times), Jay Davis (Getty), Mohamed Somji (Gulf Photo Plus) and Lars Lindemann (GEO).
Starting on 1st September and open to all visitors who register with Canon, there will be a series of inspirational and educational lectures – taking place digitally – by world-renowned professionals. This year’s speakers include guests from Magnum, Politiken and Reuters who will share insights on ethics and moral responsibilities of photographers, what agencies and photo editors look for when hiring a photographer, the power of multimedia, and how to think social first.
Canon Ambassador Exhibitions
At the festival, a range of exhibitions will be held in Perpignan. Jérôme Gence – winner of the 2020 Pierre and Alexandra Boulat Award and Canon Ambassador – will be displaying Telework. His 2019 story presents digital nomads in Bali, where young people have escaped urban life and adopted remote working, enjoying a new low-cost routine amongst the sunshine and palm trees. Additionally, Canon Ambassador Gabriele Galimberti will be displaying his work, The Ameriguns – for this collective he travelled to the United States to meet proud gun-owners, taking portraits of them with their weapons, in their homes.
For further details on Canon’s Student Development Programme, please visit:
https://www.canon.co.uk/student-development-programme/
Accredited users can access the Canon Digital Lounge, via the Visa pour l’image site:
www.visapourlimage.com