Open Call GFI#13 | Luigi Ghirri Award 2026

The Municipality of Reggio Emilia is launching the thirteenth edition of the Young Italian Photography | Luigi Ghirri Award.

This open call is addressed to artists under the age of 35 who primarily use photography for their research and visual experimentation.

The call is open to Italian citizens (including those residing abroad) and foreigners currently residing in Italy.

An international jury will select seven projects to receive a production prize and be included in a collective exhibition curated by Ilaria Campioli and Daniele De Luigi as part of the Fotografia Europea 2026 programme in Reggio Emilia.

⏰ Open on 1 december 2025
⏰ Close on 7 january 2026

🔗start submission

F.A.Q.

“In her book When I Sing, Mountains Dance, Catalan writer Irene Solà tells the story of a small village in the Pyrenean mountains through a collective narrative that intertwines human and non-human voices: clouds, deer, a dog, mushrooms, as well as people who passed away, ghosts, spirits, and the mountain itself. Through constant shifts in perspective, Solà introduces us into a universe populated by invisible beings, leading us to the acknowledgment of loss and grief, and the perception of other ways of existing.

Since its origins, the photographic medium has been dealing with the invisible, capturing its traces through lights, marks, and presences that are not perceivable by the naked eye. Similarly to Solà’s writing, Photography also intertwines the visible and the invisible, what emerges and what disappears, and often invites us to conceive other ways of existing. It is no coincidence that, in the eyes of its early witnesses, photography long seemed magical, in its ability to evoke images and to present what is not there.

Nowadays, we live submerged in a constant flow of images and information, and we might think that photography and its technological developments cover and reveal the entire spectrum of reality. Yet, a large part of our world remains voiceless and invisible: people, other living and non-living beings, those who came before us and those who will come in the future.

Let us ask ourselves: are there images that are able to evoke such missing voices?”

(Ilaria Campioli, Daniele De Luigi)

1. Production Prize

Each finalist artist will receive a prize of 1,500 euros to cover the production of their work:

• production and printing of the works (including any necessary materials, equipment or frames);
• transport to and from Reggio Emilia;
• travel, board and lodging expenses for the opening event;
• eventual insurance for transporting the works will also be covered.

2. Fotografia Europea and Luigi Ghirri Award

The works produced will be exhibited at the GFI#13 | Luigi Ghirri Award 2026 collective exhibition at the Palazzo dei Musei in Reggio Emilia, as part of the 2026 Fotografia Europea festival. A programme of events will also be organised to promote the artistic projects.

During the festival’s opening days (30 April – 3 May 2026), the Luigi Ghirri Prize, worth 4,000 euros, will be presented by an international jury to the best of the seven finalist projects.
The jury will be chaired by the artistic director of Fotografia Europea and will include a representative of the Luigi Ghirri Foundation.

3.Nuove Traiettorie – GFI in Stockholm

Thanks to our collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute in Stockholm, one of the seven finalists will be selected to undertake a period of study and research in the city. During this time, the artist will create an artistic project to be exhibited in a show curated by the Institute. The artist will be chosen by the IIC director, in consultation with the Luigi Ghirri Award jury.

4. Photo-Match @ Fotofestiwal Łódź

Fotofestiwal Łódź will invite one or more finalists to take part in the Photo-Match portfolio review programme, which is scheduled for June 2026.

5. A personal pass granting admission to the Fotografia Europea 2026 exhibitions

Each artist will receive a personal accreditation to access exhibitions and events in the festival programme.

The jury will assess projects based on the following criteria:

• artistic quality;
• conceptual coherence with the theme of the call;
• the ability to reflect on the role of photography in contemporary visual culture;
• the quality of the set-up proposal.

The finalist projects will be selected by a committee consisting of the following people:

• Ilaria Campioli and Daniele De Luigi – Giovane Fotografia Italiana, Reggio Emilia
• Krzysztof Candrowicz – Fotofestiwal, Łódź, Polonia
• Femke Rotteveel – Fotodok, Utrecht
• Danit Ariel – Photoworks Festival, Brighton

Applications must be submitted via the Picter platform by selecting the ‘GFI | Luigi Ghirri Prize 2026’ contest.

You can edit the documents you have uploaded until the competition closes on 7 January 2026.

Projects integrating photography with other media are permitted, provided the photographic element remains predominant.

The materials to be attached are:

• 5 to 15 images (1500 px long side);
• A project description in Italian and English (maximum 1,800 characters per language);
• a curriculum vitae;
• a discursive biography in English (max. 1,500 characters);
• image rights releases attesting to the consent of the subjects portrayed (template).
• an exhibition proposal with a sketch or description of the set-up (maximum 9 m of linear wall space, 3 m high).

The results of the selection will be communicated by e-mail and published on the website gfi.comune.re.it.

The selected artists undertake to:

• deliver their works to Reggio Emilia between 13 and 17 April 2026;
• attend the events during the opening days of Fotografia Europea;
• collect their works by 26 June 2026;
• authorise the possible circulation of the works to cultural partners, sponsors and institutions.

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