YANGON — The annual Yangon Photo Festival will kick off its 10th edition on Friday with exhibits by more than 150 shutterbugs at the French Institute, Maha Bandoola Park and the old Yangon Secretariat building.
“This year we hope to see there will be more audiences at the photo festival,” said Christophe Loviny, one of the event’s directors.
The festival was launched in 2009, drawing only a few hundred visitors to the French Institute its first year.
But the audiences have grown year by year. Last year the festival attracted more than 100,000 visitors to exhibits by 80 local and international photographers across Yangon.
“In this 10th anniversary we have more than 150 photographers both Myanmar and international are participating to the festival,” he said.
“Thanks to the local government and YCDC [Yangon City Development Committee], we will again inaugurate the festival with two nights of screenings by [festival] laureates at Maha Bandoola Park together with the famous World Press Photo Awards exhibition.”
Local photographers Kaung Htet and Minzayar Oo will show some of their work at an exhibit entitled “Our Cultural Heritage” on Saturday at Maha Bandoola Park. It will feature the magic and mystery of ancient kingdoms and exemplify the values of cultural heritage.
At the old Secretariat, an exhibit supported by the Goethe-Institut and curated by Lukas Birk will present the history of Myanmar photographers.
The full schedule for the festival, which will run until March 4, is available on the event’s Facebook page, “Yangon Photo Festival.”
The French Institute will host a 10th anniversary party on Friday with the opening of three exhibits by renowned photojournalists Paula Bronstein, Adam Dean and Alessandro Penso. An awards night will follow on Feb. 24 with a jury handing out prizes including a professional camera and a trip to the World Press Photo Awards ceremony in Amsterdam.
