About Polar Bear Family Photography Award（PFPA）
关于白熊家庭摄影奖
1. About PFPA / 关于奖项
The Polar Bear Family Photography Award (PFPA) is initiated by PolarBearPhotos as a long-term photography project centered on the theme of family.We understand “family” as an evolving structure of relationships. It may extend from blood ties and intimate connections, or emerge as a lived experience shaped by time, memory, responsibility, and reality. Within photography, family is both concrete and complex—rooted in individual experience, yet deeply connected to broader social and historical contexts.PFPA is concerned not only with the subject of family itself, but with how photographers engage with and articulate this theme through their work.was founded on 18 August 2018 by photographers and editors concerned with long-term documentary practice. It operates as an independent photography platform.
白熊家庭摄影奖（Polar Bear Family Photography Award, PFPA）由白熊图片社发起，是一个以“家庭影像”为主题的长期摄影项目。我们将“家庭”理解为一种持续发生的关系结构——它既可能是血缘与亲密关系的延伸，也可能是由时间、记忆、责任与现实共同构成的经验现场。在影像中，家庭既是具体的，也是复杂的；既属于个体，也与更广泛的社会与历史相连。PFPA关注的，不只是家庭本身，更是摄影师如何通过影像进入并表达这一主题。
2. Background / 背景与发起
The Polar Bear Family Photography Award originates from a simple observation: long-term photographic work around family is often overlooked in today’s image culture. Compared to more immediate and visually striking subjects, family photography tends to be quieter, slower, and dependent on time. Precisely for these reasons, it offers a meaningful entry point into understanding individual experience and broader social structures. PFPA was initiated to provide a space where such work can be seriously viewed and considered.
白熊家庭摄影奖起源于一个简单的判断：在当代影像环境中，关于家庭的长期创作，往往被低估或忽视。相比于更具即时性与视觉冲击力的题材，家庭影像通常更加私密、缓慢，也更依赖时间的积累。但正因如此，它成为理解个体经验与社会结构的重要入口。PFPA因此被发起，希望为这类创作提供一个被认真观看的空间。
3. Method & Jury / 方法与评审
PFPA is built around editorial judgment. The selection process consists of two stages: an initial review conducted by editors, focusing on the coherence and direction of each project, followed by a final round in which jurors independently score the shortlisted works. Scores are normalized to reduce variations in individual scoring habits. The award evaluates projects as a whole rather than individual images, with emphasis on long-term commitment, the full process from shooting to editing, and the work’s ability to sustain repeated viewing over time.
白熊家庭摄影奖以判断为核心。评审分为两个阶段：初审由编辑完成，关注作品的完整性与表达方向；终审由评委对入围项目进行独立打分，并对评分尺度进行统一处理。评选以项目整体为基础，而非单张影像，重点关注创作的持续性、完整的编辑过程，以及影像在时间中的可反复观看性。
4. Structure / 奖项结构
Each edition includes a Winner, a Shortlist, and an Editors’ Selection. The Editors’ Selection highlights projects that did not enter the shortlist but hold independent value. PFPA does not treat winning as an endpoint, but places greater importance on the work’s potential to enter a longer cycle of viewing and discussion.
每一届奖项包括最终优胜奖、入围作品及初评推荐作品。“初评推荐作品”用于呈现未进入入围但具有独立价值的项目。我们不将“获奖”视为终点，而更重视作品进入持续观看与讨论的可能。
5. International Scope / 国际维度
PFPA is open to submissions worldwide, without emphasizing nationality as a defining factor. Bringing together works from different cultural contexts into a shared framework of viewing and judgment naturally forms a cross-cultural ground. The jury structure remains open and rotating, prioritizing diverse perspectives rather than fixed representation.
PFPA面向全球开放投稿，但不以国籍作为表达重点。不同文化背景的创作者在同一语境中被观看与判断，本身即构成跨文化的基础。评委结构保持开放与流动，更强调经验的多样性，而非身份的代表性。
6. Presentation & Archive / 展示与传播
PFPA is primarily presented through a long-term online archive and ongoing publication. Works from each edition are systematically organized and made accessible on the website as a stable viewing platform. Occasional exhibitions and talks extend the work into physical space. Rather than focusing on one-time exposure, PFPA emphasizes the sustained presence of work over time.
奖项以长期线上档案与持续发布为主要呈现方式。历届作品将被系统整理并在网站中展示，作为稳定的观看入口。同时结合不定期的展览与分享，使作品在不同空间中获得新的观看可能。相比一次性的传播，我们更关注作品在时间中的持续存在。
7. Collaboration / 合作与支持
PFPA is initiated by PolarBearPhotos and developed in collaboration with partner institutions. Tianfu Image Art Center acts as a co-initiator and supporting partner, contributing to selected offline presentations and professional support. We remain open to collaborations in exhibitions, curatorial research, and publishing.
白熊家庭摄影奖由白熊图片社发起，并与相关机构展开合作。天府影像艺术中心作为联合发起方及支持机构，参与部分线下呈现与专业支持。我们亦开放在展览、策展研究及出版等方向的合作可能。
8. Funding & Operation / 资金与运行
PFPA operates with a low-cost structure. It does not engage in public fundraising, nor does it rely on participant fees. The monetary award remains symbolic; the foundation of the prize lies in its judgment and content, not financial scale.
白熊家庭摄影奖保持低成本运行，不进行公开募资，也不以作者付费作为支撑。奖金为象征性设置，奖项的成立基础在于判断与内容本身，而非资金规模。
PFPA operates with a low-cost structure. It does not engage in public fundraising, nor does it rely on participant fees. The monetary award remains symbolic; the foundation of the prize lies in its judgment and content, not financial scale.
白熊家庭摄影奖保持低成本运行，不进行公开募资，也不以作者付费作为支撑。奖金为象征性设置，奖项的成立基础在于判断与内容本身，而非资金规模。
9. Vision / 愿景
PFPA does not aim for rapid expansion or scale. Instead, it seeks to build a consistent framework of judgment over time and to accumulate a growing archive of family-related photographic work. It aims to create conditions in which diverse lived experiences can be understood, and where images remain accessible for repeated engagement.
白熊家庭摄影奖并不追求规模扩张，而更希望在时间中建立稳定的判断体系，持续积累关于家庭影像的档案。我们希望为不同经验背景的创作者提供被理解的可能，使影像成为可以被反复进入与观看的存在。
PFPA does not aim for rapid expansion or scale. Instead, it seeks to build a consistent framework of judgment over time and to accumulate a growing archive of family-related photographic work. It aims to create conditions in which diverse lived experiences can be understood, and where images remain accessible for repeated engagement.
白熊家庭摄影奖并不追求规模扩张，而更希望在时间中建立稳定的判断体系，持续积累关于家庭影像的档案。我们希望为不同经验背景的创作者提供被理解的可能，使影像成为可以被反复进入与观看的存在。