Portraits from the 2015 Taylor Wessing Prize | reviews, news & interviews
Portraits from the 2015 Taylor Wessing Prize
Portraits from the 2015 Taylor Wessing Prize
Browse our gallery of the best images from the annual photography prize at NPG
![](https://theartsdesk.com/sites/default/files/styles/mast_image_landscape/public/mastimages/Five%20Girls%202014%20by%20David%20Stewartmast_0.jpg?itok=Kr7nfgwG)
At first glance David Stewart’s Five Girls 2014, the winning entry in this year’s Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize, is a very ordinary scene. Five young women sit behind a table, obligatory mobile phones within reach and lying amongst the remains of a rather dismal-looking lunch.
Now in its 22nd year, the competition attracts entries from all over the world, from amateur and professional photographers alike, highlighting the scope and versatility of what might seem a restrictive genre. From family pictures to more formal portraiture and reportage, the prize has become something of a barometer of contemporary photographic practice.
This year’s highlights include Anoush Abrar’s Caravaggesque cherub, Hector, which won second prize, while Teena Taylor’s elegant portrait Norma takes similar delight in the play of light and shade. Exquisite tonal gradations and the dramatic contrasts of black and white characterise Peter Zelewski’s Nyaueth, which won third prize.
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