Young documentary photographer Syed Antu has received this year’s “Photoffee Photographer of the Year” award for his 2023 work titled “In the Void of Emptiness”.

The award was handed over to him at a gala programme held on Monday.

Photoffee Academy of Fine-Art Photography is Bangladesh’s first organisation dedicated to fine-art photography. This nonprofit institution annually honours a promising young photographer with the “Photoffee Photographer of the Year” award.

The award ceremony was held at the Pathak Shamabesh Center in Dhaka’s Kataban area.

Distinguished guests at the event included renowned photographer Shafiqul Alam Kiran, photographer and filmmaker Saiful Huq Omi, documentary photographer Mohammad Rakibul Hasan, Khandakar Tanvir Murad, head of the Photography Department at Pathshala South Asian Media Institute, photographer Jannatul Mawa, and Sudeepto Salam, founder of Photoffee Academy of Fine-Art Photography.

This event was presented by Dhaka Opera, a knowledge-based digital media platform, and the photography and film organisation Agency Perspective. As part of the award, Syed Antu received a cash prize of Tk20,000, a crest, and a certificate.

Born in 1989 in Dhaka, Syed Antu completed his postgraduate studies in Media, Communication, Film, and Television from Independent University in 2016. His journey with the camera began in 2012.

In 2019, he completed a six-month documentary photography course at the Open School of Photography. He is currently pursuing a postgraduate diploma in photography at Counter Foto.

His photography often focuses on social issues, including an extended project on individuals with physical and mental disabilities. In 2016, he won an international photography competition organised by Workability Asia.

His series “In the Void of Emptiness” symbolically portrays human disconnection and personal emptiness in the technological era.

Previous recipients of the “Photoffee Photographer of the Year” award include SA Shahriar Ripon (2011), Qamruzzaman (2012), Munem Wasif (2013), Prito Reza (2014), KM Asad (2015), Joy K Roy Chowdhury (2016), Suman Yusuf (2017), Farida Alam (2018), Salahuddin Ahmed Palash (2019), Riyad Abedin (2020), Emon Mostak Ahmed (2021), and Monon Muntaka (2022).