In pictures | ‘The beauty of concrete’

The winners of an international photography competition capturing the “beauty and importance of concrete” have been unveiled.

The Global Cement and Concrete Association’s (GCCA) annual photography competition attracted entries by both professionals and amateurs, ranging from urban scenes to playparks, unusual architecture and transport networks.

The contest covered three categories – concrete infrastructure, urban concrete, and concrete in daily life.

Nurlan Tahirli took the $10,000 (£7,000) overall prize for a photo of the Heydar Aliyev Centre in Baku in Azerbaijan. Amateur and professional winners were also named in each category, with each category winner collecting a prize of $2,500 (£1,800).

The competition ran from October to December 2020 and was judged by: Gabriele Galimberti, National Geographic photographer; John Fairley, photographer and creative director of Curious Productions; Gian Luca Barone, senior associate at Zaha Hadid Architects; and Dinah McLeod, chief executive of the GCCA.

McLeod said: “The pictures truly capture the wide range of ways in which concrete plays a fundamental role in life. We were delighted and overwhelmed by the stunning quality and number of photos that we received from just about every corner of the world – a huge thank you to all entrants. We were hugely impressed with their ability to depict how concrete has been continuing to support our lives even in these difficult times.”