NAYANTARA GURUNG KAKSHAPATI

NayanTara is a photographer and curator based in Kathmandu, Nepal. Her work seeks to embrace themes such as change, identity, gender, and history within the context of a Nepal in transition. She enjoys working across platforms to connect visuals, research, sound, pedagogy, and activism. In 2007, she co-founded photo.circle, a photography platform that has facilitated learning, publishing, and audience engagement opportunities for Nepali photographers. In 2010, she co-founded the Nepal Picture Library; a digital photo archive that strives to document a public history of the Nepali people. NayanTara is the Co-Founder and Festival Director of Photo Kathmandu, Nepal’s first international photography festival.

Read our Jury Interviews: Nayantara Gurung Kakshapati

JESSICA LIM

Jessica Lim is the newly-appointed director of the annual Angkor Photo Festival & Workshops, the longest-running international photography event in Southeast Asia which she first joined in 2010. Prior to this, she started as a journalist in Singapore before transitioning to serving as a photo and news editor for Drik (Dhaka, Bangladesh), and remains a staunch advocate for equal opportunities for photographers in the majority world. She currently is also a managing partner of One Eleven Gallery in Siem Reap, Cambodia, a gallery showcasing contemporary visual art from around the world.

Read our Jury Interviews: Jessica Lim

WANG XI

Wang Xi is a curator and academic based in China and currently holds the position of Academic Director of Xie Zilong Photography Museum. Wang has previously curated 3 editions of Dali Photo Biennial, alongside curatorial roles for PIP Photo Festival, Angkor Photo Festival, Orange Photo Festival, and Singapore International Photography Festival amongst others. He is also on the advisory panel for Dali Photography Museum, Ningbo Ala Photo Festival and Ningbo Liyuan Photography Museum. Wang has also served as a columnist for Southern Metropolitan Post, Shanghai Oriental Morning News, Digital Camera, Mijing Photo Magazine and Private History Magazine. Wang is a scholar and collector of Photography History in China from the periods 1860-1900s.

Read our Jury Interviews: Wang Xi

ROBERT GODDEN

Robert Godden is a human rights campaigns and communication expert who specialises in the use of visual media for positive social change. He is currently the Director of Campaigns and Communications at Rights Exposure, an award-winning international human rights consultancy providing solutions for positive social change. Before setting up Rights Exposure, he was with Amnesty International for 15 years, from 2004-2014 as the Asia-Pacific Campaign Coordinator based in London, Kathmandu, and Hong Kong. Robert is regularly invited to speak on the role of the image in social justice campaigns, including at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, The University of Hong Kong, Magnum Foundation, Photo Kathmandu, SCAD, and World Press Photo Awards Days. He holds an MA in South Asian Area Studies from SOAS, University of London, and is an alumnus of the New York University Tisch School of the Arts/Magnum Foundation Photography & Human Rights programme.

Read our Jury Interviews: Robert Godden

EMMELINE YONG

Emmeline Yong is a co-founder and director of Objectifs - Centre for Photography and Film. Established in 2003, Objectifs has become regarded as one of the leading independent visual arts spaces in Southeast Asia, recognised for its efforts in nurturing artists and championing photography and film locally and internationally. Emmeline continues to oversee the artistic direction and general management for the centre. She has served as a judge and nominator for several awards, including the ICON de Martell Cordon Bleu Photography Award and Magnum Foundation Fund. She has also curated several photography exhibitions including the annual Women in Photography exhibition at Objectifs, which features works by women photographers from Asia and around the world.

Read our Jury Interviews: Emmeline Yong

KEVIN WY LEE

Kevin WY Lee is a photographer and creative director based in Singapore. He has worked in the creative industry in Asia and Australia for almost 20 years. In 2010, he founded Invisible Photographer Asia (IPA), an influential platform for Photography & Visual Arts in Asia. Through IPA, Kevin participates vigorouslyÊin photography and art across the region as a practitioner, curator and educator. More about Kevin WY Lee on http://www.kevinwylee.com