URBAN Unveils the City and its Secrets - Vol. 12 brings together selected photographs and portfolios from URBAN Photo Awards 2026, presenting different authors, visual languages and interpretations of urban life from around the world. (Mark De Roeck - series Storytelling Walls page 337)
URBAN Unveils the City and its Secrets - Vol. 12 brings together selected photographs and portfolios from URBAN Photo Awards 2026, presenting different authors, visual languages and interpretations of urban life from around the world. (Mark De Roeck - series Storytelling Walls page 337)
A city tells its story through the people who inhabit it, the spaces that shape it and the situations unfolding in its streets. The twelfth volume in the series explores these varied perspectives, focusing on gestures, geometries, encounters and details that photography preserves beyond the moment in which they occur.
The collection unfolds through the competition’s four categories:
People: the people at the centre of urban life, from individual portraits to collective scenes.
Spaces: architecture, forms and spatial details, including places without a human presence.
Creative: experimentation, manipulation and interpretations that move beyond documentary photography.
Streets: everyday life in public spaces, shaped by passing moments, gestures and unexpected encounters.
Rooted in street photography, the URBAN project encourages readers to look at both visible events and the less obvious aspects of society: the contrasts, transformations and relationships that shape the urban experience.
The competition entries were reviewed by an international jury including Mark Power, Christopher Morris, Mihaela Noroc, Barbara Silbe and Salwan Georges, alongside other photography professionals. Created and promoted by the cultural association dotART, URBAN Photo Awards extends beyond the competition through exhibitions and publications dedicated to contemporary photography.
This volume presents a reality seen from many perspectives, through images that document, interpret and sometimes transform what we see. It invites readers to explore cities more closely and recognise the stories hidden within their everyday details.
Mark De Roeck is a photographer whose passion for imagery began during his studies in graphic design and advertising. From the start, he focused on photography and, together with friends, established a studio where he experimented with lighting for black-and-white photos. His professional career began as an artistic director at an advertising agency, where he collaborated with various photographers specializing in different fields, such as fashion, interior design, architecture, and packaging design. This experience fueled his fascination with creating the right atmosphere and lighting for every subject.Over time, his interest in landscapes grew thanks to his travels through Central and North America and Australia. These explorations broadened his perspective and led him to view people not only as photographic subjects but also as elements integrated into specific situations. Mark De Roeck continues to combine his expertise in lighting with a fresh perspective on the interaction between individuals and their environment, creating images that capture unique moments and moods.
