Photography buffs: prepare yourselves for an exciting, all-new, all-online format for this year’s Kuala Lumpur Photography Festival which begins today 19 August 2020.

Included in the line-up of events are photography exhibitions, dialogues and interviews, photography and travel seminars, product technical seminars, Travelmania and Photomania live streams, flash sales and a silent auction.

Kim Teoh, Founder of KLPF, is confident that the festival, which is now in its 24th year, will continue to thrive with an online presence. “This year, people all over the world are living an extraordinary chapter in history with the COVID-19 outbreak. Although there are fewer restrictions now compared to when Malaysia was placed under the Movement Control Order (MCO) in March, our lives will never be the same again,” he says.

“However, while we are limited in our freedom to move about, we are not limited in our freedom on creative thinking. To celebrate this freedom, the KLPF will feature images taken by Malaysian photographers during MCO, regardless of whether they were on lockdown or on duty. This collection will be an archive of this historic moment of the 21st century in Malaysia,” he adds.

In response to COVID-19 and in order to comply with guidelines for public gatherings, the KLPF 2020 will run for a month from 19th August to 19th September 2020 via streaming on the festival’s Facebook page at @KLPFMalaysia.

From today, viewers will be treated to virtual gallery photo exhibitions such as the annual theme exhibition ‘Art of Cultures’; a Portfolio Exhibition curated by Loyola University’s Clinical Professor in School of Communication Jamason Chen, the Young Photographers Program, #dudukrumah The Lockdown Series, The Director’s Choice Exhibition and the Editors’ Choice: Stories from the Kampung (Travel Series) Exhibition. Almost 2,000 photos will be exhibited this year.

Look out also for the Camaraderie Showcase featuring photographers who have established a unique bond with the KLPF through years of collaboration, such as Jerome De Perlinghi (USA), Alex Ng (Hong Kong), Chiyoko Tsuchida (Japan) and Jamason Chen (USA).

“Special mention must go to the various photographic societies that have supported KLPF over the years. They have continued to back us this year, where we are providing them a platform to showcase their work,” says Teoh. Among the 16 societies involved at KLPF 2020 are Women Photographers Malaysia, Bintulu Visual Arts Club, Kelab GoPro Malaysia, PSPJ, FJM and MNS Selangor Photo Group.

“As always, we are thankful to our sponsors, particularly our main sponsor OPPO, who has sponsored us for the fifth year running. Thanks also go out to our co-sponsors Godox, Canon, Asustor, Seagate, LensGo, MTCC and YL Camera for their support for KLPF 2020,” he adds.

Of particular significance this year is a live international event called Festival of the Festivals, where photography festivals from overseas are invited to collaborate with KLPF. By linking up with similar events around the world, it is the organisers’ hope that Malaysian photography will gain greater international recognition.

Also, part of KLPF 2020 is the Young Photographers Program, an initiative to nurture and inspire young photographers. Through the Program, students from 20 schools and institutions will learn about life as a professional photographer by expressing their creativity and participating in exhibitions and presentations.

Of particular interest will be the live stream programs during KLPF 2020. ‘Viewfinder - A Short Documentary’ (30th August, 9.30pm-11pm Malaysia time) by visual storyteller Melody Gilbert is a documentary on photographer Michael Deering, who has taken one photo on film every day for the past 23 years. The photos have numbered more than 8,000 and have never been shared.

‘Wildlife Photography in Borneo’ (16th September, 8-8.30pm) by conservationist Cede Prudente will look at nature photography and conservation work in Sabah and feature images depicting the value of nature and wildlife in everyday life.

‘Peranan Jurugambar dalam Masyarakat’ (22nd August, 11-11.45am) by freelance photographer Shamshahrin Shamsudin examines how photographers can inform, educate and create awareness to the public through their images. A former photographer with French wire agency Agence France-Presse (AFP) and the European Pressphoto Agency (EPA), Shamshahrin has been published in the Life magazine website, IHT, Time, Asiaweek, Far Eastern Economic Review, and The Star-Ledger (NY).

The KLPF started out in 1997 as the Kuala Lumpur Photo Trade Show, the only platform for art and technology exchange in Southeast Asia at the time. The show was renamed the Kuala Lumpur Photography Festival in 2005, turning it into a more inclusive event for photographers and photography enthusiasts. Today, the KLPF continues to build on the passion of its founders to advocate an interest in photography as a medium of visual arts.

For more on KLPF 2020 and dates and times for live streams, go to www.facebook.com/KLPFMalaysia or www.klpf.com.my.