[ CULTURAL PRACTICES ] A set of photographs that increases the understanding and appreciation of a cultural practice. It can be about festivals, religion, traditions, or contemporary cultural trends. Submissions do not have to adhere to documentary principles. Alternate processes and digital manipulations are allowed. Each submission consists of 5 to 20 images. Each participant is allowed to enter up to 2 submissions. All images must be taken in 2023.

Judges for Cultural Practices
Gülbin Özdamar Akarçay
Gülbin Özdamar Akarçay
Jessica Lim
Jessica Lim
Joshua Irwandi
Lam Chun Tung
Lam Chun Tung
Saiyna Bashir
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First Place

Veiled by Cloud and Mist

Yixi Tian
Independent
China

In the southeastern region of Guizhou, there are numerous ethnic minorities, with the Miao people being predominant. Surrounded by mountains and with limited transportation, this place is considered isolated from the rest of the world in the eyes of most people. It is also shrouded in many mysterious legends, among which Miao medicine plays a legendary role. My mother is a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, and one of her mentors was a Miao doctor skilled in using herbal remedies deep within the mountains. Under their guidance, I entered another enchanting world akin to an "Arcadia". In this living mountain realm, plants and humans merge as one entity, coexisting harmoniously and perpetuating life endlessly.
Iran's uprising was caused by the death of Mehsa Amini, a 21-year-old Kurdish girl who suffered a skull fracture and brain death after being arrested by the guidance patrol and moral security police in Tehran for wearing a voluntary hijab. The first protest gatherings of this uprising took place on September 17, 2022, in front of the hospital where Mehsa Amini died in Tehran, and in the following days, it spread to all 31 provinces of Iran. Iranians living abroad also held protest rallies in more than 150 cities around the world. Following the suppression of these protests by the government according to contradictory statistics, about 500 people were killed and more than 22,000 people were arrested, including Iranian political and social activists, students, artists and athletes. This protest uprising among desire for freedom fighters turned into a "movement with the slogan of women, life, freedom".

Finalist

Peking Wood

Xiangfeitian
Independent
China

Over 100 years ago, under the guidance and enlightenment of Ch'en Tu-hsiu and his journal “La Jeunesse (New Youth)”, the young people of that era shouted for a better future for their state. Everything they did in Peking (now known as Beijing) deeply influenced the destiny of China. Today, more than a century later, the echoes of their call-to-arms still linger on, while enlightenment remains an unfinished task. Peking has transformed into Beijing, and the youth of China no longer care about the burdensome topics of the past. As a member of this generation, at the age of 30, I, like most others, am following the beaten path of life, but I am tortured by increasing self-doubt. The prosperous Beijing resembles vast steel woods, no longer like the old image of Peking. Faint lights flicker in the distance, and fog shrouds the road ahead. Like the whole young generation, I am lost, but perhaps what we cannot find is not a road, but ourselves. With unanswered questions, I have connected with 99 peers through social media, entering their homes and observing their lives through the lens of my camera. I believe that the answers lie there. I see the surface "perfection" they display, their contentment with stable salaries, their anticipation for the unknowns in life, and their desire for freedom and independence - it seems like they live without constraints. But at the same time, the same "wandering" as me is exposed. Strong cultural conflicts bring about contradictory thoughts and overchoice. They ward off evil spirits with red underwear following traditional Chinese cultural customs, yet also wear Christmas socks to experience a different kind of warmth. The diverse values and valuations bring about contradictory behaviors. They attempt to choose their romantic partners completely free but dare not show off. They are obsessed with playing Mahjong but are reluctant to play it with older people. The double standards bring about hidden crises, either of which make them lost between their selves and society. "Who am I? Where do I come from? Where am I going?" These eternal questions of philosophy and religion constantly concern the young generations of all ages. We are burdened with high hopes in this era, even though we may not bear the weight of it. Each face in this series of photographs attempts to capture the inner landscape of today's Chinese youth, and to portray the interweaving of reality and dreams, as well as confusion and struggles in life.

Award of Excellence

Ancestral Faith

Ksenia Maksimova
Independent
Russia

One of Russia’s oldest indigenous peoples, the Chuvash, live in the Volga region, in the Chuvash Republic. Prior to the forced Christianization and Russification of the Chauvish in the 17th century at the hands of the Russian state, the Chuvash adhered to a traditional pagan faith. Christianization took many forms for the Chuvash. The civil rights of unbaptized Chuvash were reduced and those who performed pagan rituals were subject to legal punishment. Some of the Chuvash retained their faith by leaving their ancestral lands, hiding from oppression in remote towns and villages. One of the regions where the Chuvash people migrated was the Samara region; in particular the village of Starogankino. Starogankino has a population of 715 according to a recent census. Of these, 50-60 people remain who follow the traditional Chuvash faith. Over time, there are even fewer of them, and the younger generation leaves these places and moves to the cities. Unbaptized Chuvash people do not have their own religious books and written commandments. These prayers and rituals are kept only in their memory, passing in oral tradition on to the next generations by word of mouth. The supreme god of the unbaptized pagans Chuvash is Tura, meaning “Great, Big God”, and his younger brother Shuittan, a Satan-esque figure who opposes him. Besides these two, there are many other gods and spirits. The Chuvash believed that all life in this world has its own spirit, gathered in sacred places for collective prayers for rain and harvest. Over time, some of the rituals and religious holidays of the Chuvash pagans in Starogankino have disappeared to the annals of time. Gradually some Chuvash were baptized while another small part of the population converted to Islam. But despite the processes that influenced the preservation of the traditional Chuvash faith, the remaining unbaptized Chuvash of Starogankino continue to carry out burial rites and commemoration of their ancestors. Traces of the ancient faith are present in everyday life in the form of rites and beliefs, such as the ‘evil eye’ or warding against disease.

Award of Excellence

The Future of Food

Lauren DeCicca
Independent
USA/Thailand

In Isaan culture, the tradition of foraging for seasonal insects and preparing them at home or buying them from local markets is deeply ingrained in the culinary practices of the region. In recent years Isaan farmers have shifted their business to insects from traditional crops like rice or cassava, due to its potential for higher profitability and relatively low initial and maintenance costs. As the world grapples with growing food security challenges, the Isaan tradition of insect consumption highlights an under utilized high protein source with a potential solution to feed an expanding global population.

Award of Excellence

Pehlivan

Onur Coban
Independent
Turkey

At the Kirkpinar oil wrestling festival, the competition takes place in an open, grassy field, with the contestants naked except for trousers made of leather, which extend to just above the knees. Victory is achieved when one wrestler either pins the other to the ground or lifts his opponent above his shoulders. The dream of each wrestler (Pehlivan in Turkish) is to win the Kirkpinar Golden Belt and become a “chief wrestler” (Baspehlivan). Turkish oil wrestlers (all men) usually start wrestling from a very young age, as young as seven years old. Many of them do not start wrestling by choice, but upon the wish of their father in order to continue a family tradition.

Award of Excellence

The Rite of the Second Burial

Sirachai Arunrugstichai
Independent
Thailand

The Lang Pacha ritual (cemetery cleansing in Thai) is a seldom-seen ceremony deeply rooted in the ancient rite of the second burial, which originated during the Song dynasty in China and brought to Thailand with the influx of Chinese immigrants after World War II. The ceremony, which rarely takes place, involves the cremation of remains from exhumed graves at times when cemeteries run out of burial space, with Buddhist volunteers playing a pivotal role. Driven by the belief in accruing good karma, these volunteers engage in the meticulous process of cleaning the remains of the deceased. They clean skulls and bone fragments using toothbrushes and a tea solution before adorning them with gold leaf. The cleaned bones are then assembled and subjected to a dramatic cremation ceremony in burning pyres. This rare ritual not only addresses practical issues of cemetery space but also serves as a religious journey for the devoted Thai Buddhist volunteers and is the remainder of this centuries-old Chinese ritual that no longer exists elsewhere.