Juliette Pavy Named Photographer of the Year at 2024 Sony World Photography Awards

The 2024 Sony World Photography Awards celebrated empathetic storytelling and diverse perspectives in photography at a ceremony in London on April 18. French photographer Juliette Pavy was named Photographer of the Year for her powerful series "Spiralkampagnen: Forced Contraception and Unintended Sterilisation of Greenlandic Women," which shed light on the forced contraception and unintended sterilization of Greenlandic Inuit women by Danish authorities in the 1960s and 1970s.

Pavy's winning portfolio documents the severe and lasting impact of the involuntary birth control campaign known as 'spiralkampagnen' or 'coil campaign.' Several thousand Inuit women and girls, some as young as 12, had intrauterine devices (IUDs) implanted without their consent. The series uses various photographic formats, including interviews with victims, doctors, and the Danish parliamentarian investigating the campaign, to capture the collective trauma experienced by the Greenlandic Inuit community.

The revelations of this forced contraception policy led to an official inquiry in Denmark, which is set to conclude by the end of 2024. Pavy's work exposes this historical injustice and gives voice to the affected women, many of whom suffered complications, infections, and unintended sterilization from the IUDs.

Why this matters: Pavy's series sheds light on a little-known chapter of colonial history and its lasting impact on the Greenlandic Inuit community. Her work demonstrates the power of photography to expose injustice, give voice to marginalized communities, and spark important conversations about human rights.

Other winners at the 2024 Sony World Photography Awards include Liam Man, who was named Open Photographer of the Year for his landscape image "Moonrise Sprites Over Storr," and Kathleen Orlinsky, who won the Sustainability Prize for her series "America's First Wilderness" about the Gila Wilderness in New Mexico. Student Photographer of the Year went to Kayin Luys from Belgium, while Daniel Murray from England was named Youth Photographer of the Year.

Acclaimed Brazilian photographer Sebastião Salgado received the Outstanding Contribution to Photography award for his distinctive black-and-white works documenting the human condition and the natural world over the past five decades. The winning photographs from the 2024 Sony World Photography Awards will be showcased in an exhibition at Somerset House in London from April 19 to May 6.

Key Takeaways

• French photographer Juliette Pavy named Photographer of the Year
• Pavy's series exposed forced contraception of Greenlandic Inuit women
• Inquiry in Denmark to conclude by 2024 on this historical injustice
• Other winners: Liam Man, Kathleen Orlinsky, Kayin Luys, Daniel Murray
• Sebastião Salgado received Outstanding Contribution to Photography award