20th MIRA Mobile Prize

Many photographers have made street photography the focus of their work: Robert Frank, Vivian Maier, Elliot Erwitt, Diane Arbus, Helen Levitt, Martin Parr, to name but a few. What they have in common is the recording of events in public places: on streets, avenues or paths, on beaches, in markets, museums, places of worship, festivals, restaurants, theatres... What unites these places are the human beings who inhabit them – walking, sleeping, praying, eating, laughing, crying, alone, in groups, together in crowds.

One might say that the documentary dimension runs through the entire field of street photography. It is the photographers’ perspectives that expand this meaning in different directions: from intensity and theatricality to intimate and silent moments, from the most ironic to the most empathetic gaze, from the banality of everyday life to events of historical significance, from a vibrant and almost performative atmosphere to meditative and contemplative silence... In all these records, the human gesture is ever-present in the diversity of cultural expressions, and also in the individuality of each person.

The smartphone has brought about the photographer’s discretion and invisibility, which is evident in the expressiveness of the works we received—black and white yet colourful in their diversity.

The American Renee Zanone is the winner of this edition, and Raquel Lamares from Porto is the highest-ranked Portuguese entrant. Both have previously had photographs on the shortlist of earlier editions, so first place in this edition comes as no surprise to us.

We would like to express our gratitude to the members of the jury for their availability and enthusiasm in carrying out the task of selecting the best photographs: Armineh Hovanesian (USA), Emir Bozkurt (Turkey), Marco Prado (Brazil), Nelson Marmelo (Portugal), and Sukru Omur (France).

Manuela Matos Monteiro

The exhibition opens on 8 November at 16:00, at Rua de Miraflor 155, featuring the 50 shortlisted photographs and a projection of the top 150 pictures.

SHORTLIST

Acúrcio Moniz, Adelino Marques, Amo Passicos, Andrea Seligman, Angela Santos, Anirudh Koppula, Anthony Ginns, Augusto Lemos, Carla Sofia Sousa, Cláudia Fernandes, Christian Barroso, Demétrio Jereissati, Dominik Schulze, Eder Turziani, Eugénia Silva, Fernando Schmitt, Filipa Scarpa, Jack Schim, Jean Sartief, José Amoroso, Jose Luis Morales, José Mamede, José Praça, Joseph Cyr, Jyotik Bhachech, Lauro Machado, Leandro Selister, Luis Rodríguez, Lurdes Ribeiro, Lúcia Melo, Maria Caldas, Marie Grigorieva, Marc Devriese, Miroslav Radomski, Olga Arune, Paulo Fernandes, Pilvikki Kause, Rafael Perez, Ramune Bernotaite, Raphael Greenhalgh, Raquel Lamares, Rene Bernal, Renee Zanone, Salomé Carvalho, Simone Arruda, Tetê Schmidt, Vincenzo Dolce, Will Delaney, William Clavijo, Zulaine Santos.

CURATORSHIP

Manuela Matos Monteiro | João Lafuente

Support: CMP

Credits

MIRA Galerias | MIRA FORUM

Directed by Manuela Matos Monteiro and João Lafuente

Communications: Manuela Matos Monteiro and Beatriz Vital