The 2024 International Photography Exhibition features 40 original photographs taken overseas in 22 different countries by 34 Ohio State students, staff, faculty and alumni. Over 425 members of the campus community submitted more than 800 photographs across three categories: People, Places and Arts & Culture. The exhibition includes a diverse selection of images captured in Australia, Bangladesh, China, Cuba, Czechia, Denmark, Ecuador, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Italy, Japan, Malawi, Morocco, Nepal, Peru, Portugal, Singapore, Spain and Turkiye.
Staff member Jen Heaton earned Best in Show for her “Threads of Tradition” photographed while traveling in Peru. WOSU staff member Ryan Staples earned First Place award in the People category for his portrait, “Kathmandu Kids” captured in Nepal. Graduate student Mehran Shirazi was award Second Place for “The Grandpas’ Club” and “Topeng Mask Maker” by alumnus Richard Smith earned Third Place in the People category.
The top photo in the Places category was “Twilight at Yanwu Bridge” by undergraduate student Andy Cao. Second place went to “Huayhuash – Into the Wild” by alumnus Shin Wong. Captured by a graduate student from Colombia, John Hurtado Cadavid, “The Sacred Salt of the Mountain” was awarded Third Place in the Places category.
Taken by alumnus Richard Smith, “Dancing in the Dark” earned the First-Place award in the Arts & Culture category. “Grace and Restraint” earned the Second-Place award for Wendy Pramik, a staff member. Mehran Shirazi, a graduate student from Iran won the Third-Place award for “Echoes of Knowledge” in the Arts & Culture category.
The 40 images selected for the exhibit were entered into an online People’s Choice vote through the Office of International Affairs Facebook page and Instagram feed. Nearly 5,000 votes were cast and People’s Choice winners were chosen by the public in each category. Graduate student Maria Vitoria de Rezende Grisi’s photo “Brincando como o rio” was honored in the People category. Captured by graduate student John Hurtado Cadavid, “The Sacred Salt of the Mountain” won the people’s choice honor in the Places category. “The Abyss of a Good Book” earned the people’s choice award for graduate student Danica Matovic in Arts & Culture.
The 34 exhibition photographers represented a cross-section of Buckeyes including: seven undergraduate students, fourteen graduate students, four staff members, one faculty member, and eight alumni. Not only are the photographs international, but many of the photographers are as well. Fifteen photographers are international and hail from nine different countries: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, India, Iran and Spain. Six of the photographers are from China and two from both India and Iran.
Photographs in the exhibition were first submitted in three categories to the International Photography Competition, an annual contest open to all members of the Ohio State community. As part of the competition, Ohio State Buckeyes from 47 countries submitted photographs taken in 94 countries. The Places category had the most total submissions with 368 photos entered. Over 224 photographs were submitted in the People category and 235 images in the Arts & Culture category.
The place winners and best in show photographs were selected by a four-person judging panel of staff at Ohio State. The judges honored one selection with the overall Best in Show award and selected first, second, and third place winners in each category. The judges also awarded honorable mention recognition to 30 photographs.
Organized annually by the Office of International Affairs, the international photography competition and exhibition has showcased Ohio State’s top international photography for 20 years. Visit International Photography Competition & Exhibition to view the current exhibition or browse past photography exhibitions.