City Soleil : Eager to Learn

• Prize
  Gold in Editorial/Photo Essay, Gold in People/Children, 2nd Place winner in People
• Photographer
  Urim Hong
• Technical Info
  Leica Mp, 35mm Summicron
• Photo Date
  2018.1.4

City Soleil is a shantytown where the people live in extreme poverty in Haiti. Despite the poor environment, the daily lives of the children on this land is an interesting one. This is not their choice but what they are born with. Human beings can indeed adjust to their environment but one can nurture the courage to face it through learning. Saying no to their destined environment and learning continuously by dreaming for a better tomorrow, it was their passionate heart for learning that made it possible. This is the narratives of the children who prevail in hunger but in sincerity.

Urim Hong is a photographer who searches for light in the isolated world. After majoring in the humanities as well as pedagogy, he taught children for a decade and, in that process, found himself called to photography. He majored in photography at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. Currently, he is leading a project for the children and orphans in Citi Soleil, a small village within the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area in Haiti. He was selected as Editorial Photographer of the year at the 2018 IPA, 2019 MIFA and PDNedu Awards, 2020, 2022 IPA Documentary(Editorial) winner.