Belmond proudly announces the inaugural winner of the first Belmond Photographic Residency during Paris Photo: Cecy Young. This new initiative is a testament to the brand’s ongoing commitment to contemporary travel photography, nurturing emerging and unrepresented photographic talent, and their never-seen-before body of work. This new work will become part of the Belmond Legends campaign, which has seen 14 original commissions from artists including Coco Capitán, Jack Davison, François Halard, Rosie Marks, and Chris Rhodes. It will also become a photobook with RVB and be exhibited.

A RENOWNED JURY

After receiving over 800 applications from artists worldwide, Belmond’s distinguished jury selected a shortlist of 18 talents from 10 countries via online judging. These esteemed figures in the photography and arts community included: Simon Baker (Director of Maison Européenne de la Photographie), Carla Sozzani (Gallerist and Founder of Fondazione Sozzani), Coco Capitán (Photographer), Antwaun Sargent (Writer and Curator), Ekow Eshun (Writer and Curator), Matthieu Charon (Co-Founder of RVB Books), and Arnaud Champenois (Senior Vice President of Global Brand, Belmond).

THE INAUGURAL BELMOND PHOTOGRAPHIC RESIDENCY WINNER

Winning ARTIST

CECY YOUNG

Cecy Young was raised in Monterrey, Mexico, where she first discovered her passion for photography while attending art school. Determined to pursue her dream, she relocated to Paris to study at the Spéos Paris Photographic Institute. There, she began building her career, working with commercial clients in the beauty industry. With a desire to expand her creative boundaries, Cecy looked further East, driven by a longstanding personal interest in Japan. She has studied Japanese language and culture since childhood. Her work is a reflection of her cross-cultural journeys, blending diverse influences gathered on her travels.

Quote from Cecy Young: “I’m truly honoured and grateful to have been chosen for this residency. This experience will allow me to explore new creative depths and connect with a community that celebrates creativity.”

About her winning portfolio on. Japanese town of Atami: “I have been visiting Japan almost yearly since 2014, and during my visits I was struck by scenes that seemed frozen in time. Much of the architecture hails from the economic boom between the '60s and ‘80s. After the crash in the early '90s, many areas outside the urban centres were left behind, creating a sense of a nostalgia and better times. During a visit to Atami and other small cities in the Shizuoka Peninsula, I took an interest in the architecture particularly of the hotels that retain their old glamour. These areas are close to Tokyo and there was an expectation for these cities in becoming Tokyo’s vacation spot. Atami, like many small Japanese cities, is changing, but the neo-futuristic architecture remains as a testament to an era of flourishing for geishas, big groups of salary men on company retreats and family summer getaways. As more people flock to big cities and Japan grapples with a low birth rate, the future of its small cities and villages is uncertain. While working in this project I felt I entered a fragile Showa bubble where time stopped. My work is a documentation that seeks to treasure this sense of time standing still, the lingering echoes of a bygone era while contemplating an uncertain future.”

Cecy will receive an all-expenses-covered residency at a Belmond property location, a print publication with RVB Books, a photography showcase in a major global city, mentorship from Belmond's network of photographic experts, and a financial award of €15,000. Additionally, the winner's work will play a pivotal role in the Belmond Legends campaign, providing their singular artistic point of view and contemporary perspective on a Belmond destination.

A GLOBAL AWARD for emerging talent

A shortlist of 18 talented photographers from 10 countries were selected for the live judging weekend from a total of over 800 applications. The live judging too place at Castello di Casole, A Belmond Hotel in Tuscany, from 19-21 October, where the winner was selected alongside three highly commended artists.

Quote from juror Antwaun Sargent (writer and curator): “The Belmond Photo Residency offers an emerging voice an engaging environment to create something new in a place that offers endless possibilities to push the boundaries of their art. The site of the residency in Tuscany will allow for the artist to express their concerns and conceptual conceit in new and daring ways. The mix of portfolios this year offered fresh takes on the idea of travel photography. The inaugural winner of the residency, Cecy Young, has a daring curiosity in her pictures that are expressed through a range of emotion that highlight the places and people she photographs. Ana's photographs bring a newness to concepts of beauty, luxury and place.”

“AS SEEN BY” - BELMOND’S ARTBOOK COLLECTIBLES EXPANDED


In conjunction with the unveiling of the first Belmond Photographic Residency winner, Belmond is thrilled to announce the release of two new limited-edition art books in the “As Seen By” collection. Released during Paris Photo 2024, Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, A Belmond Hotel, Oxfordshire by Thomas Rousset and Eastern & Oriental Express, A Belmond Train, Southeast Asia by Stefanie Moshammer expand the collection to an impressive lineup of five artistic commissions. This adds to the previously launched books by photographers Coco Capitán, Rosie Marks and Letizia Le Fur – all celebrating the enchanting narratives of Belmond's iconic properties.

The collectible photographic book series will be showcased for the duration of Paris Photo at the RVB stand in the Grand Palais, including book signings by Thomas Rousset and Stefanie Moshammer at 6pm on Friday 8th November at the Grand Palais and Saturday 9th November at Dover Street Market Paris. The books will also be available for global purchase via RVB Books’ network of premium bookstores and galleries, as well as online for 35EUR, 32GBP, and 38USD from 30 October.

These books will continue to define Belmond’s annual publishing calendar with each edition presenting a singular interpretation of a Belmond destination.

ARTIST BIOS

THOMAS ROUSSET

Thomas Rousset, graduated from ECAL in Lausanne, Switzerland, in photography. He lives and works between Lausanne (CH) and Paris (FR). Employing staging as a creative tool that blurs the boundaries between reality and fiction, his artistic endeavors delve into the totemic and ritualistic dimensions of everyday life. He collaborated with magazines like Alla Carta, Buffalo Zine, Harper’s Bazaar France, Vogue Italia, W Magazine. Additionally, he has published 3 books, the last “Prabérians” is a monograph with the publisher Loose-Joints.

STEFANIE MOSHAMMER

Stefanie Moshammer (b. 1988,Vienna) is a visual artist whose practice operates at the intersection of research, observation, and recreation. She works across mediums such as photography, moving images, text, installations, and book publishing. She is the author of six books and she received numerous awards and prizes. Her work has been exhibited in galleries and museums across Europe, the US, and Asia.

The artists’ images can be downloaded HERE