Ishiuchi Miyako Wins Kering Women in Motion Prize for Photography

Jennifer Weil
·2 min read
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PARIS — Kering has named Ishiuchi Miyako the winner of its 2024 Women in Motion Award for photography, in recognition of the Japanese artist’s representation of women that invites viewers to examine their own perceptions of femininity and womanhood.

She is due to receive the prize on July 2 during the photography festival Les Rencontres d’Arles, at which Miyako will present her work and discuss her own journey and view of women’s place in society photography. A monographic exhibition of Miyako’s work will be held, in collaboration with the Kyotographie international photography festival, in the Salle Henri-Comte in Arles from July 1 to Sept. 29.

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“The topic of women representation permeates Ishiuchi’s work in subtle yet powerful ways,” Kering said in a statement Friday. “She critiques the objectification of women by reclaiming the female body as subjects of her art. Her photographs celebrate imperfections, scars and aging, in opposition to the standards of beauty shown by mainstream media.”

Last year in Kyoto, Kering supported the exhibition “Views Through My Window,” an interplay between Miyako and Tuhki Touyama, which was part of the luxury group’s partnership with Kyotographie. Among Miyako’s other recent exhibitions were solo shows at Each Modern in Taiwan and Stills in Edinburgh, both in 2022.

Initially aimed at highlighting work by women in the realm of film, Women in Motion was founded in 2015 at the Cannes Film Festival. Kering expanded the program by adding the photography award in 2019.

The prize is accompanied by an endowment for acquiring works of the winner for the festival’s collection. The previous recipients were Rosângela Rennó, Babette Mangolte, Liz Johnson Artur, Sabine Weiss and Susan Meiselas.

Kering also revealed the third installment of the Women in Motion Lab, which draws on research projects focusing on the role of women in photography. The 2024 edition is titled “I’m So Happy You Are Here, Japanese Women Photographers From the 1950s to Now” and will be shown by Aperture at the Palais de l’Archevêché. Kering called it the first collective exhibition in France dedicated to this history. It will feature 25 photographers, including Rinko Kawauchi, Yurie Nagashima and Kunié Sugiura.

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