Exhibition Name: "The 13th My Town My Home Photography Annual Exhibition"

Exhibition Dates: October 23rd - October 31st, 2018

Venue: Main Hall, 1st Floor, Guan Shanyue Art Museum

Opening Ceremony: 14:30 PM, October 23rd, 2018

Organizers: Shenzhen Guan Shanyue Art Museum, Shenzhen Professional Photography Association

2018 has been a remarkable year, marked by China's 40th anniversary of reform and opening-up, the China-US trade war, and the super typhoon Mangkhut, the strongest in 35 years, all deeply etched in the memories of Shenzhen residents.

The selected works for this year's exhibition prominently reflect the annual theme of China's 40 years of reform and opening-up. Among the 13 groups of selected works, 5 are directly related to this theme: "Today's Shekou," "The Tranquil Shenzhen River," "New Seascape," "Shatoujiao," and "Telling Shenzhen Stories in Jest." These works, from perspectives of humanity, geography, reality, history, and temporal-spatial contrasts, comprehensively capture the earth-shaking transformations brought about by 40 years of reform and opening-up in Shenzhen, inspiring awe and contemplation. The convergence of photographers and their works on this theme genuinely reflects a shared sentiment among Shenzhen residents—a profound affection and sensitivity towards reform and opening-up. It also reaffirms that reform and opening-up have become an essential identifier of Shenzhen's identity.

The exhibition received 5,600 submissions from 57 local Shenzhen photographers, with 13 groups comprising 226 works making the final cut. The exhibited works demonstrate Shenzhen photographers' focus on the city's development and local narratives. The participating photographers range in age from 19 to 71, offering multifaceted views of Shenzhen and showcasing the breadth of Shenzhen's documentary photography. Notably, the documentary focus, social relevance, humanity, and artistry advocated by the My Town My Home Photography Annual Exhibition have gained increasing recognition, indicating a significant shift in Shenzhen photographers' approach. They are no longer solely focused on capturing landscapes afar but have turned their lenses towards local issues, urban stories, Shenzhenese lifestyles, and the city's evolving landscape. Many photographers adopt a documentary style to capture images centered on urban humanity, reflecting the humanistic sentiment of documenting urban cultural forms and the conflicts between dreams and reality.

The My Town My Home Photography Annual Exhibition has had the privilege of accompanying us for 13 years. We are grateful to this young and vibrant city, to all our fellow photographers who have joined us on this journey, and to the support from Shenzhen's Special Fund for the Development of Propaganda and Cultural Undertakings. Let us continue to forge ahead together into the future. Let us persist in our efforts within the realm of photography, capturing the fleeting moments of My Town My Home and ourselves. By consistently promoting the annual exhibition of documentary photography in Shenzhen, "My Town My Home" has become an influential cultural brand in the city. Through annual photography and exhibitions, it preserves the trajectory of Shenzhen's development, creating a visual archive of the city.