Welcome to Festival Zone for February 2025.
Festival 2025
We're delighted to share an advance announcement of two of our key artists and projects that will feature in the ‘Sustain' [tautīnei] suite of works. Auckland Festival of Photography presents work by Maurizio Di Pietro, an Italian freelance documentary photographer.
ZERO HUNGER: “As a photographer, I am particularly drawn to subjects that reveal the fragility and resilience of life in the face of challenges. My vision has also been consistently attentive to environmental issues, which inevitably intersect with social concerns, driving me to explore the complex relationship between humanity and the environment. "ZERO HUNGER" is a striking example of this approach, intertwining visual storytelling with an urgent call to environmental action. The project is inspired by the UN's SDG Goal 2, which aims to eradicate world hunger by 2030. Focusing on innovative and sustainable solutions to the growing food crisis exacerbated by climate change, particularly the potential of insects as a protein source." - Maurizio Di Pietro
Hiroaki Hasumi; 032 Tochigi - Japan 2024
We also delighted to announce another of our key artists and projects that will feature in the ‘Sustain' [tautīnei] suite of works. Auckland Festival of Photography presents an exclusive showcase by Japanese artist, Hiroaki Hasumi.
Lost Forest - The Other Side of Decarbonization: "This project focuses on modern energy policies that claim to protect the environment but end up destroying it. When I first saw a mega solar power plant sprawling over what was once a forest, my heart was filled with shock and pain. It was like a heartbreaking moment. As a person who has lived with deep reverence for nature, it was an unbearable sight for me. However, solar energy is embraced for almost everyone as a harmless and perfect solution for decarbonization. Building mega solar power plants is appreciated as a solution for climate change, but on the other hand, it is associated with deforestation and ecosystem destruction." - Hiroaki Hasumi. Full 2025 programme details announced in April.
Talking Culture - Photobook exclusive
Auckland Festival of Photography [whakaahua hākari] is delighted to announce the attendance at Festival 2025 by Michael Itkoff, USA. Michael is a publisher, consultant, and former Chief Content Officer at Britelite Immersive. Michael Co-founded the internationally-celebrated art book publishing house, Daylight as well as content experience platform, Fabl. For over twenty years Michael has been a leader in publishing both digital and print media.
Along the way, Michael has written for the NYTimes Lens blog, Art Asia Pacific, Nueva Luz, Conscientious blog, and the Forward. Michael’s photographic and video work is in public and private collections in the United States and his work has appeared on the covers of Orion, Katalog, Next City, and Philadelphia Weekly. Michael was the recipient of the Howard Chapnick Grant for the Advancement of Photojournalism (2006), a Creative Artists Fellowship from the Pennsylvania Arts Council (2007), and a Puffin Foundation Grant (2008). Michael’s monograph Street Portraits was published by Charta Editions in 2009.
He will be joining the public programme promoting the Daylight Books collaboration with Chris Corson-Scott, NZ for the New Zealand launch of Chris's book 'The Afterglow of Industry'. The book collects photographs and texts made during a 10-year project in which the artist repeatedly traveled the length of New Zealand, from its urban centers to its most remote landscapes. Through painstakingly produced large-format film photographs and extended texts, the book explores the aftermath of the industrial era and colonial project in New Zealand, reflecting on what our labor and dreams can mean in an age of late-capitalism and climate change.
Full details in April.
2025 Call for submissions - Open now
Happy Lunar New Year. The 22nd annual Auckland Festival of Photography is officially now open for submissions, and we are excitedly encouraging submissions from artists, educators, and curators from around the region, nation and the world until 21st March 2025. Image below: Geraldine Simian; Festival of lights (Lantern 2009)
We will be welcoming creative and insightful interpretations on the subject (for more information about our 2025 theme, click here).
Your participation can be in-venue, online, or outdoors and can include a wide variety of activities that celebrate photography and its makers. Exhibitions, talks, events, book launches, pub quizzes, performance projections and everything in between can be suggested to our Festival Trust.
The Festival serves as a gathering of cultural exchange for visual storytellers, lens-based artists, educators, students, and anyone passionate about the art form, to connect with a large and diverse audience and share lived experiences, stories, and dynamic creativity, especially during challenging times.
Our joint programme model has been in place since 2004 allowing for full creative freedoms with work presented by artists, curators, groups and dealer galleries based in New Zealand. The Festival offers an inclusive platform for creative freedom that allows independence to choose how and where they showcase their work.
Vision - Photography Connecting Communities and People
Closing soon at Queens Wharf, Auckland
Deep Space, NASA Exhibition; Queens Wharf Fence Exhibition
Closing soon, end of this month, at Queens Wharf — downtown by the Ferry terminal — is a selection of images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope’s NIR-Cam and transmitted about 1.5 million kilometres back to us. These images are exceptional, high resolution glimpses at the majesty and mysteries of deep space and raise questions about both the enormity of our galaxies, and humankind’s place within it. We invite you to explore these incredible photographs.
Presented exclusively by the Auckland Festival of Photography down here on earth’s Tāmaki Makaurau, thanks to Eke Panuku Development for their support.
Aotearoa Music Photography Awards 2025
Chris Double; Art Wank UFO Gig
Aotearoa Music Photography Awards 2025 – Opens 1st May – Cash prizes, People’s Choice Prize, products, vouchers on offer for the image with most valid public votes. Terms and conditions, prizes announced in April.
Part of our May programme will be Pop up exhibitions and screenings for the previous 2024 AMPA winners and entries, which will be available at The Strand Arcade, Auckland Central Library, Ellen Melville Centre, High Street, Commercial Bay Tower and Quay Street display and Takapuna’s street walk. Start saving the date, for these exclusive Awards and if you're in a band, a group or solo artist, professional photographer, keen amateur or audience member start shooting for the Awards submissions.
Donations
Donate $20 to support the work we do; all donations are NZ tax credit eligible via our Give A Little page and can be made monthly to help keep us afloat in these challenging cost of living recessionary times.
All donations received go towards the ongoing sustainability of the annual Festival activities.
The Trust is registered with the Charities Commission No: CC38839.
WHAT HAPPENS TO MY DONATION?
The Festival team works all year-round creating opportunities so that photographers from every genre can present their new work. We provide and maintain the platform, profile and network necessary to present you with the best opportunities to inspire the imagination and showcase photography in our annual Festival.
Festival exhibitors can have the opportunity to join the 2025 community and be part of a Festival that showcases both international and national artists at diverse stages of their careers. All funds received as admin fees go towards the ongoing sustainability of the annual Festival and associated activities such as, see our 2024 end of year review.
