Crowdfunding campaign for Moscow World Press Photo exhibition launched after sponsors withdraw

A crowdfunding campaign has been launched to raise money for the 2015 World Press Photo Exhibition in Moscow, after the event lost its sponsors last week. The exhibition, which showcases the winning photographs from the exhibition’s main competition, was planned to go ahead at Moscow’s ArtPlay centre this May, however organisers were “faced with the fact that partners and sponsors cannot or are not willing to support us”, a statement on crowdfunding website Planeta.ru reads.

“We are confident that the exhibition is interesting and important to everyone who cares about photography, to journalists and to those who are convinced of the importance of free exchange of information between countries and people,” the statement reads. “Therefore, despite these difficulties, we believe that the project will take place this year, but we can’t do it without your support.”

The goal of the two-month crowdfunding campaign is to raise 300,000 roubles ($5,620), which is intended to cover the rent of the exhibition space and transportation of the artworks.

This year’s World Press Photo Exhibition is set to be part of a new, Moscow-based contemporary photography festival 31 days Fotofest, which was established to present the main trends in modern photography to a Russian audience. 31 days Fotofest will take place from 15 May-13 June and will feature a number of photography exhibitions across Moscow.