The installation view of Light and Shadows, a themed exhibition of the 2023 Leica Oskar Barnack Award (LOBA). [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

With the 9th Jimei Arles International Photo Festival in full swing in Xiamen, East China's Fujian province, one of its exhibits has attracted much attention.

Leica Camera, a German manufacturer of high-end cameras and optical lenses, unveiled Light and Shadows, a themed exhibition of the 2023 Leica Oskar Barnack Award (LOBA), one of the world's most prestigious photography prizes, on Sunday at the Three Shadows Photography Art Center's Xiamen space.

The exhibit marks the debut of Leica Camera at the photo festival, which was co-initiated in 2015 by the Three Shadows Photography Art Center, the first contemporary art space dedicated exclusively to photography in China; and the Rencontres d'Arles, the "Cannes Film Festival of the photography world".

On show are more than 40 works from four photography series shortlisted for the award: the "Sea Beach" series by Bangladeshi photographer Ismail Ferdous, winner of this year's LOBA Main Award; the "New Comer" series by Chinese photographer Le Ziyi, winner of the LOBA New Comer Award, a prize reserved for photographers under the age of 30; Brazilian photographer Gustavo Minas's "Liquid Cities" series; and French photographer and photojournalist Eric Bouvet's "Elevations" series.

Le was the second Chinese photographer to scoop the LOBA New Comer Award after Huang Jing did in 2011. His winning series features a group of portraits he took beginning in 2020, capturing the loneliness, anxiety and alienation seen among young people who left their hometowns to work and live in other cities.

Siegmund Dukek, managing director of Leica Camera Greater China, speaks at the opening ceremony of Light and Shadows, a themed exhibition of the 2023 Leica Oskar Barnack Award (LOBA), in Xiamen, East China's Fujian province on Dec 17, 2023. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Granted to outstanding photographers every year since 1980, LOBA recognizes how photography expresses the relationship between man and the environment. The occasion for the launch of the competition was the centenary in 1979 of Oskar Barnack (1879–1936), the leading inventor and pioneer of 35mm photography, said Siegmund Dukek, managing director of Leica Camera Greater China, at the exhibit's opening ceremony.

The selection of the winners for the prize is based on proposals submitted by a panel of nominators, made up of curators, gallery owners, art directors and picture editors, as well as numerous photographers from around the world. The final choice of the winners in the main and newcomer categories, as well as the shortlist nominees, is made by a five-person, international jury.

The prize is also known as one of the best-endowed in the world of photography. The LOBA's Main Award winner receives 40,000 euros ($43,698) and a Leica camera worth 10,000 euros ($10,939). The New Comer Award winner receives 10,000 euros and a Leica Q3.

The exhibition will run through Jan 21, 2024 and then travel to the Leica Gallery Taipei in Taiwan.

Brazilian photographer Gustavo Minas's "Liquid Cities" series [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] A photo from Chinese photographer Le Ziyi's "New Comer" series [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] Chinese photographer Le Ziyi, the winner of LOBA New Comer Award, speaks at the opening ceremony of Light and Shadows, a themed exhibition of the 2023 Leica Oskar Barnack Award (LOBA), in Xiamen, East China's Fujian province on Dec 17, 2023. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] The works of Le Ziyi are on show at Light and Shadows, a themed exhibition of the 2023 Leica Oskar Barnack Award (LOBA), in Xiamen, East China's Fujian province on Dec 17, 2023. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] The "Sea Beach" series by Bangladeshi photographer Ismail Ferdous, winner of this year's LOBA Main Award [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] French photographer and photojournalist Eric Bouvet's "Elevations" series [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]