'Drying incense' wins reFocus Awards Colour Photography Contest

By Trang Nguyen
Wed, May 31, 2023 | 7:04 pm GMT+7

The photo 'Drying incense' by Azim Khan Ronnie has been named among the top 23 at the 2023 Color Photography Contest at the reFocus Awards.

"Vietnamese workers sit surrounded by thousands of incense sticks in Quang Phu Cau in Hanoi, Vietnam, where the sticks have been traditionally made for hundreds of years," Ronnie wrote to describe his photo.

"Incense plays an important role in the spiritual lives of Vietnamese people," he added, noting that the pink sticks are usually used in worshipping activities.

'Drying incense', taken by photographer Azim Khan Ronnie.

"Drying incense", taken by photographer Azim Khan Ronnie.

In January, the incense village of Quang Phu Cau on the outskirts of Hanoi was named among Pantone's 2023 "color destinations" by New York-based travel magazine Travel + Leisure.

"Ahead of the Lunar New Year celebrations - called Tet in Vietnam - you'll find hundreds of bright-pink incense sticks fanned out like bouquets along the streets and courtyards," the magazine wrote.

Patone, a multinational corporation headquartered in New Jersey, U.S., is best known for its Pantone Color Matching System, a copyrighted color space commonly used in a variety of industries, mostly printing and the paint, plastic and textile manufacturing industries.

The two photos that claimed first place in the 2023 Color Photography Contest were "Scavengers" by João Coelho and "Kushti" by Alain Schroeder.

The reFocus Awards are a new photo contest platform, and its first competition was held last September with the “One Shot” contest.

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