The 2017 Jimei - Arles Photography Festival is set to take place in Jimei district of Xiamen, Fujian province from Nov 25 to Jan 3 next year, aiming to show the beauty of Jimei and stimulate cultural innovation.

Over 40 exhibitions displaying the works of more than 150 artists from around the world, including the US, France, Spain and Iran, are expected to be held during the festival.

Among them, eight exhibitions have been selected from this year's Arles International Photography Festival, one of the most influential photography festivals in the world, according to Bérénice Angremy, director of the festival.

Joel Meyerowitz, a street photographer from the US and Wang Wusheng, a renowned photographer in China are to host individual exhibitions.

The festival will also hold three exhibitions themed on Chinese rhythm and more than 10 other exhibitions organized by young curators to show the innovative works of Chinese photographers.

The Jimei – Arles Discovery Award will be established to encourage promising Chinese photographers to work on more excellent photo projects.

A Female Photographer Award sponsored by French magazine Madame Figaro will also be set up to reward the achievements of Chinese female artists.

Several sub pavilions will be set up all over the city in unconventional exhibition spaces such as cinemas, hotels and villages to bring art closer to local residents.

Besides the various exhibitions, a collection of other activities will also be organized, including a photo book fair, photographers' meet-and-greet, seminars on photo-taking, the Annual Night of Arles, and cultural performances.

Jimei district has hosted the photography festival together with Arles International Photography Festival for the past two years and more than 100,000 visitors have admired the exhibits.

The 2017 Jimei - Arles Photography Festival is set to take place in Jimei district of Xiamen, Fujian province from Nov 25, 2017 to Jan 3, 2018. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]