The Museum of Gloucester is once again working with the Royal Photographic Society (RPS) to bring their renowned International Photography Exhibition 163 (IPE 163) to Gloucester in January.

Over 8,000 images were entered by 3,944 photographers from 114 countries, making this a record-breaking year for the most countries engaged in an open call to the competition. A total of 105 works by 60 photographers will be on display in the Museum from 28 January until 4 June.

The International Photography Exhibition (IPE) is the world's longest running photography exhibition. Now in its 163rd edition, the IPE 163 is a powerful presentation that demonstrates the breadth of contemporary image-making and storytelling today.

The IPE 163 explores themes of identity, cultural heritage, global societal issues, gender politics, mental health, the natural world, and the human condition.

The selected work pays particular attention to the personal impacts of the pandemic, capturing hardship, grief, resilience, and hope.

The IPE 163 also employs experimental techniques, innovative approaches, and traditional processes to challenge expectations, ignite conversation and give a voice to under-represented communities. Collectively, the exhibition compels us to re-imagine the way we interpret the world.

The IPE 163 award is given to Tim Franco, a French-Polish photographer, for his work 'Unperson - Portraits of North Korean Defectors'. South Korean photographer KyeongJun Yang receives the Under 30s award for work from his series 'Men Don't Cry'.

This exhibition forms the second phase of the partnership between the Museum of Gloucester and the Royal Photographic Society which will see the International Photography Exhibition tour to the Museum of Gloucester each year following its initial display at their home in Bristol for three years.

Evan Dawson, RPS CEO, said: "The photographs chosen for this year's International Photography Exhibition are some of the most striking and impressive that we've ever seen. Our most successful open call saw more people entering from around the world than ever before, demonstrating the power of photography to tell meaningful stories, and to connect with one another. Congratulations to all the selected photographers."

Cllr Andrew Lewis, cabinet member for culture, said: "We are looking forward to welcoming the International Photography Exhibition to Gloucester again this winter. The exhibition proved extremely popular last year and we know our visitors will be delighted to see this incredible body of work by internationally renowned artists coming back to Gloucester.

"This year's exhibition, which also pays attention to the pandemic, is an important topic that will resonate with the people of Gloucester. We urge residents and visitors to the city not to miss this opportunity and also hope to inspire the next generation of photographers through our accompanying engagement programme."

A full programme of events, including a series of talks and workshops from a selection of exhibiting photographers can be booked online closer to the start of the exhibition.

For further details on the exhibition and its supporting events, please visit museumofgloucester.co.uk/events/rps-ipe-163