Call Description

Foto Forum Santa Fe is pleased to announce an open call for our 2026 Foto Forum Santa Fe Photography Award, an annual international competition open to emerging and established artists. The award was conceived to support photographers by giving them an opportunity to have their work viewed by our outside jurors as well as our in-house curator Executive Director Sage Paisner, to give the winner the chance to share their work in the photography-friendly city of Santa Fe, and to put a little money in their pocket to help in the production of the work.

We also think it is encouraging to know that our executive director Sage Paisner has identified artists that have been added to our gallery roster who entered but did not win the Award. We highly encourage you to take the time and effort to apply.

Information about the 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 Award Winners Federico Estol, Rebecca Moseman, Ciro Battiloro, Jerry Takigawa, and Renee Romero is available on the Photo Award section of our website Photo Award

more about the award visit our website Foto Forum Santa Fe

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ABOUT THE JUROR: 

Ray Potes began his obsession with shooting photos and making zines at age 14 in San Diego. He has been doing the same ever since. Now based in San Francisco, he runs and operates Hamburger Eyes, both a magazine and publishing house dedicated to black and white photography. Hamburger Eyes has since produced over 200 titles of zines, magazines, and books alongside countless exhibitions, commissions, and collaborations of all shapes and sizes.

First Place Award receives a two month solo exhibition in our Santa Fe gallery down the street from SITE Santa Fe located in the Railyard Art District and $2,500 in Cash and Prizes: $1,000 Cash Prize, $1,500 Gift Certificate to Visions Photo Lab, plus a $500 stipend towards delivering the work to the gallery and having the work returned to the artist. 

Fee:$30 Discounted Early Entry November 8th, 2025 to January 22nd 2026, then $40 starting January 23rd, 2026 to until February 24th, 2026. $45 late entry February 25th until March 5th, 2026.
Students and Foto Forum Santa Fe Members email sage@fotoforumsantafe.com for 20% discount coupon.

Photographers are invited to submit up to twelve images at least 1mb in size but not bigger than 2mb files or videos from a related body of work that is ready for exhibition. This year's Jurors will choose the winner based on creativity, cohesion, maturity, and quality of the work.

Foto Forum Santa Fe is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that creates an artistic space to explore the current relationship between photography, storytelling, science, and technology through artist exhibitions, workshops, visiting artist lectures, research, and community outreach. The Photography Award expands upon Foto Forum’s commitment to showcasing both contemporary work from established artists and giving opportunities for emerging photographers to find an audience.

IMPORTANT DATES

Early Bird Entry  Discounted ($30)

 November 8thth, 2025 -January 22nd, 2026 

Standard Entry ($40 ) January 23rd, 2026  - February 24th, 2026 

Late Entry ($50) February 25th, 2026 - March 5th, 2026 

March 15th, 2026: Jury Selection Begins

April 18th, 2026: Results Announced; Winner Contacted

June 5th, 2026: Solo Exhibition Opening Reception


Portfolio Selection Advice:
The Award is centered around a solo exhibition in the Foto Forum Santa Fe gallery. We suggest you send in twelve photographs that you feel could be part of a cohesive exhibition, rather than trying to show the broad range of different work you make. We are not accepting video submissions at this time, but video can be part of the exhibition. You can submit video stills and describe the video in your Artist Statement. The selected winner will work with Sage Paisner to curate the final exhibition, which may include works not submitted with your application. The Artist Statement is a perfect place to explain how the twelve photographs relate to each other and provide additional information about the body of work and your artistic practice.

Application Requirements

All applicants are required to submit a portfolio of 6 to 12 photographic images or videos, an Artist's Statement, Bio, C.V., and a title of the show. 

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility: All artists 18 years or older