cizucu Presents 'Third Landscape' | Challenge #380

‘Third Landscape’ is a global online photo contest curated by cizucu, open to all creators registered on cizucu. Outstanding submissions will be curated, aiming to discover new talent through the platform and foster support within the community.

This edition’s theme is ‘Third Landscape’.

The concept of the Third Landscape originates from the French botanist Gilles Clément’s idea of ‘Tiers-paysage’. These are vacant lots, abandoned sites, railway verges, and wastelands in urban or rural settings—places left behind by human management or development. Although outside the logic of production and efficiency, these spaces serve as margins where diverse life can persist.

Places where society found no value.
Spaces pushed to the periphery of urban planning.
Landscapes left unnamed and overlooked.
Or perhaps, places that exist only in someone’s memory.

Photography has always provided an opportunity to turn our gaze to the margins. What may seem like mere wasteland could appear entirely different through your eyes. We look forward to seeing your perspective on these landscapes.

Yuya
Ruins that have come to an end, and children with futures yet to begin.

cizucu Editorial Team
The building enveloped in ivy quietly speaks to the passage of time since it was last touched by human hands. Plants have crept into what was once a living space, blurring the boundary between architecture and nature. The children passing by evoke a sense of lost landscapes and new daily life existing side by side.

st

cizucu Editorial Team
The walkway that once extended toward the water now quietly sinks beneath the surface. Structures built for human movement are eventually reclaimed by the passage of natural time. The landscape that remains after function and purpose are lost is imbued with a mysterious tranquility.

つばさ製作所
Aoyama Kitamachi Apartments
Some walkways had been closed off, but it seems all the buildings were demolished at the end of last year. The site is now completely cleared.
Once the Aoyama Shopping Center along Aoyama-dori is demolished, the Showa-era character of this area will disappear.
It appears that from January 15, the surrounding walkways will also be closed.
I intend to continue documenting how this area, so close to Omotesando, will change.

cizucu Editorial Team
The vacant lot that has emerged in the city center exists as a temporary void awaiting the next phase of development. Precisely because its purpose is undefined, it becomes a margin that welcomes diverse perspectives. This fleeting landscape, born from urban renewal, appears only for a short time until its new use is determined. We look forward to witnessing how this area near Omotesando will continue to transform.

張頌潔
“The moment we learn to say goodbye with a smile, we have grown up.”

cizucu Editorial Team
In the landscape seen from the train window, grasses as tall as a person sway quietly. These are scenes easily overlooked in the course of daily life, but a shift in gaze brings their presence into focus. In these interstitial spaces born of human activity, the time of plants flows, and the Third Landscape quietly emerges.

calm…

cizucu Editorial Team
The pier and water surface glimpsed beyond the foreground grasses evoke a certain ambiguous sense of distance. The grasses, never cast as the main subject, instead define the contours of the landscape. The scene quietly reflects the coexistence of spaces shaped by human hands and plants growing freely.

【Contest Period】
Saturday, June 27, 2026 – Sunday, July 26, 2026

【Award Announcement】
Around Friday, August 7, 2026

【Reward】
Free participation ticket for the cizucu ‘Photo Poster Project’ (2 recipients)

【How to Submit】
・Select the ‘Third Landscape’ contest
・Tap ‘Agree to Submission Guidelines and Post’
・Select your content and submit your work

【Jury Criteria】
(1) Thematic Relevance: Does the work align with the stated mission?
(2) Subject Focus: Is the photographer’s intent clearly conveyed?
(3) Expressiveness: Does the work demonstrate expressive qualities such as perspective, composition, balance, focus, and color?
(4) Moment: Has the photographer captured the decisive moment or timing of the subject?
(5) Originality: Does the work show unique ingenuity in location or subject?