About Us
The World Press Photo Foundation believes in the power of showing and the importance of seeing high-quality visual stories. Our purpose is to connect the world to the stories that matter.
We are a global platform connecting professionals and audiences through trustworthy visual journalism and storytelling, founded in 1955 when a group of Dutch photographers organized a contest (“World Press Photo”) to expose their work to an international audience. Since then, our mission has expanded and we draw on our experience to guide visual journalists, storytellers, and audiences around the world through this challenging and exciting landscape.
Our purpose is to connect the world to the stories that matter.
World Press Photo - 2021 Yearbook
Featuring the most striking images and compelling stories from 2020
Since 1962, the prize-winning images and stories from the World Press Photo Foundation's annual Contests are showcased in our annual Yearbook. We’re proud to present the World Press Photo Yearbook 2021, featuring The First Embrace, the World Press Photo of the Year by Mads Nissen, on the cover.
The Yearbook 2021 brings you the most striking images and compelling stories from 2020 with winning photography from the 64th annual Photo Contest, taken by 45 photographers from 28 countries. In an unprecedented year marked by the COVID-19 pandemic and social justice protests around the globe, the 2021 Photo Contest winners share a diversity of interpretations and perspectives to these and other urgent issues such as the climate crisis, LGBTQ+ people's rights, and territorial conflicts.
This year, the yearbook also includes essays by Saskia Asser, curator of Photography, Rijksmuseum; Azu Nwagbogu, founder and director of African Artists' Foundation (AAF) and Lagos Photo Festival; and NayanTara Gurung Kakshapati, 2021 Photo Contest jury chair and co-founder and director of photo.circle.
The book is available in six languages: English, Dutch, French, German, Italian, and Spanish.
Juries of the 2021 Digital Storytelling Contest and 2021 Photo Contest
