Trieste Photo Days 2025
International Photography Festival
12th Edition
October 23-26, 2025
Exhibitions open from October 24
Planning is in full swing for the twelfth edition of Trieste Photo Days – International Festival of Photography, which since 2014 has been transforming the heart of Europe into a vibrant crossroads of culture and visual creativity.
From 23 to 26 October, Trieste Photo Days invites the public to immerse themselves in the best of contemporary international photography, with exhibitions in the city’s main venues, workshops, masterclasses, portfolio reviews, photo walks, special events, award ceremonies and presentations of new editorial projects.
SPECIAL GUESTS
Trieste Photo Days reaffirms its international mission and in 2025 once again brings to Trieste leading figures of contemporary world photography — the protagonists of exhibitions, guided tours and exclusive meetings with the public:
● Matt Black (Magnum Photos), an American photographer from California’s Central Valley. From 2014 to 2020 he travelled over 100,000 miles across 46 states for his American Geography project, published by Thames & Hudson and turned into an international exhibition. Among his best-known works are The Dry Land and The Monster in the Mountains, published by The New Yorker and accompanied by short films. His photographs have appeared in TIME, The New Yorker, Le Monde and Internazionale. He has received the W. Eugene Smith Award, three Robert F. Kennedy Awards and honours from World Press Photo, the National Geographic Society and others. He has been a member of Magnum Photos since 2019.
● Paolo Verzone (Agence VU’), an internationally renowned photographer with over thirty years of experience. Based in Barcelona, he is known for long-term projects exploring identity, culture and the environment. Among his most acclaimed works are Seeuropeans, Moscow Project and his series on cadets of European military academies, published by La Martinière. Since 2009 he has also been focusing on the Arctic, with an emphasis on scientific and environmental issues. His photographs have appeared in National Geographic, Le Monde, Vanity Fair and Rolling Stone. He has won three World Press Photo awards and the 2023 Picture of the Year International, and his works are held in prestigious collections such as the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Bibliothèque Nationale de France. A Canon Ambassador since 2017 and National Geographic Explorer since 2024, he combines visual storytelling and cultural engagement in high-impact projects.
● Denis Curti, a leading figure in the world of photography, holds numerous prestigious roles including Director of Le Stanze della Fotografia in Venice; Director and Founder of STILL, a photography gallery in Milan; Editor of the online magazine Black Camera; and Artistic Director of Deloitte’s PhotoGrant.
● Dario De Dominicis, a professional photographer since 1993, with work published in both Italian and international publications such as L’Espresso, El País, Le Monde, Newsweek and The Guardian. Since 1998 he has devoted himself to documentary photography through various long-term personal projects. Since 2014 he has been documenting the severe consequences of marine pollution on the economy and health of the artisanal fishing community in Guanabara Bay. The project won the “Madre Terra” award at the Festival della Fotografia Etica in Lodi (2020) and was a finalist for the W. Eugene Smith Fund Grant (2021).
● Andy Hall, a London-based freelance editorial photographer with over 35 years of experience. Throughout his career he has produced reports worldwide for leading magazines and newspapers such as The Guardian and The Observer, as well as for NGOs including UNHCR. His work on the hunger and climate crisis in Africa’s Sahel region was screened at the Visa Pour L’Image photojournalism festival in 2012. A winner of the Best of Street Photography 2016 competition, he has also been a finalist in prestigious awards including the Brussels Street Photography Festival (2019 and 2024, for single images) and the LensCulture Street Awards 2021.
FREE EXHIBITIONS OPEN TO EVERYONE
Thanks to a rich programme of exhibitions, guests and events, the Festival offers the public a full immersion in contemporary international photography, all set against the splendid backdrop of Trieste. With over 2,000 photographs on display, the programme turns Trieste into an international stage for photographers and artists from all over the world. Exhibitions, both group and solo, are hosted in historic venues, museums and urban spaces.
Magazzino 26, in Porto Vecchio, will host the second edition of M26 Project. Visual Reflections in Porto Vecchio, featuring images by Matt Black and projects he selected for the exhibition Gaze on Existence, as well as work by Paolo Verzone, special guest of Mythography V: Juno, Venus and Vesta, an international photographic project inspired by Greco-Roman mythology. Completing the Magazzino 26 programme are the exhibitions Errore Errare by the Circolo Fotografico La Gondola of Venice and Inshallah by Nicolas Brunetti, winner of the 2025 Patricia D. Richards Legacy Award.
Among the flagship exhibitions of the 12th edition, Dario De Dominicis will be a special guest of URBAN Animals, dedicated to the coexistence of animals and urban spaces (Sala Veruda of Palazzo Costanzi), and of Il Cantico delle Creature, created to celebrate the 800th anniversary of St Francis of Assisi’s Canticle of the Creatures (Sala Selva of Palazzo Gopcevich). In these two international group exhibitions, the work of De Dominicis — a renowned photo-documentarist — offers a deep and surprising vision of reality.
The Museum of Oriental Art will host India. Two Gazes, One Story. The photographs of Adriano Perini, held in the Photographic Archive of the Civic Museums of History and Art, are in dialogue with the accounts of Sandro Antoniolli; the exhibition is the winner of the international selection organised in collaboration with the Museum of Oriental Art and the Photographic Archive of the Civic Museums of History and Art.
At the Municipal Art Hall, Andy Hall’s Tales of the City — selected by Harry Gruyaert in the “Online Projects Selection 2024” for exhibition in 2025 — will be on display.
Also on show in the Sala Selva of Palazzo Gopcevich are Caryatis by George Tatakis, winner of the 2025 Civic Museums / URBAN Photo Awards Prize (now in its 8th edition); Beyond Words. Photographic and Poetic Explorations in the Soul of Giuseppe Ungaretti, where the photographs of Gianpaolo Arena dialogue with poems selected through an international open call; and MetaReality by Giuliana Di Giulio and Simone Giuntoli, winners of the 2024 Adriano Perini Photo Imago Portfolio Review.
Krzysztof Bednarski with Measured Silence, winner of the “URBAN 2024 Projects and Portfolios” section selected by Adam Pretty, together with the winners of URBAN Photo Awards 2025 and the third edition of the “Exhibit Around Trophy”, will be exhibited at Sala Xenia.
The URBAN Photo Awards 2025 exhibitions will enliven the Central Post Office in Piazza Vittorio Veneto and the ITIS – Public Social Services, with URBAN Reveals the City and Its Secrets, while the Covered Market will host Urban Photographs: Trieste and the Cities of the World.
Trieste Photo Days also confirms its focus on young photographers under 35, with exhibitions at Sala Fittke: Borders Stories by Ekaterina Frolova – TALENT2025 (GO! 2025) and URBAN Photo Arena.
Connecting the various exhibition venues throughout the city will be the Trieste Photo FRINGE, the festival “off” that showcases the best of international urban photography in a circuit of selected venues across the city. Beyond Trieste, the Festival anticipates its October events with URBAN exhibitions at Trieste Airport and Il Cantico delle Creature in Assisi.
MUST-SEE EVENTS
Trieste Photo Days kicks off on Thursday 23 October with the presentation of the photographic project and book Il Cantico delle Creature at the Museo LETS Letteratura Trieste, with Dr. Riccardo Cepach – Head of Museo LETS Letteratura Trieste, Prof. Antonino Clemenza – Pontifical Antonianum University of Rome, and photojournalist Dario De Dominicis, in collaboration with the social cooperative LA.SE.
From Friday 24 October the Festival enters its full programme, starting with the opening of the exhibition India. Two Gazes, One Story. The photographs of Adriano Perini, preserved in the Photographic Archive of the Civic Museums of History and Art, in dialogue with the testimonies of Sandro Antoniolli alongside curators Claudia Colecchia and Francesca Avignone, and author Sandro Antoniolli.
The day continues with the inauguration of the exhibitions at Palazzo Gopcevich: Il Cantico delle Creature with Dario De Dominicis and Antonino Clemenza; Oltre le Parole with Gianpaolo Arena; and Caryatis with author George Tatakis and curators Claudia Colecchia and Michela Messina.
Also on Friday 24 October, presentations will be held for Mythography Vol. V: Juno, Venus and Vesta with Professor Enrico Medda, and for URBAN Animals and Il Cantico delle Creature with Dario De Dominicis, Federica Berzioli and Antonino Clemenza.
Saturday 25 October is dedicated to the award ceremony of the 16th edition of the international photography contest URBAN Photo Awards 2025, in the presence of Matt Black, Paolo Verzone, Denis Curti and other Festival guests.
On the morning of Sunday 26 October, Matt Black and Paolo Verzone will each give unmissable talks at Magazzino 26 in the Old Port of Trieste.
ACTIVITIES
The Festival days will be enlivened by a range of LEARNING AND EXCHANGE OPPORTUNITIES, starting with a workshop with Matt Black (23–24 October), followed by three masterclasses with Paolo Verzone, Gianpaolo Arena, Denis Curti and Claudia Colecchia (25 October); portfolio reviews supervised by Denis Curti (24, 25 and 26 October); and a photo walk with Andy Hall (25 October).
GUIDED TOURS
GUIDED TOURS of the exhibitions with the artists — Matt Black and Paolo Verzone, Dario De Dominicis and Gianpaolo Arena, Andy Hall and Krzysztof Bednarski, Nicolas Brunetti and Ekaterina Frolova — and of Errore Errare with Massimo Stefanutti, President of Circolo Fotografico La Gondola di Venezia, will offer the public a unique opportunity to explore the exhibitions up close and engage directly with leading figures in contemporary photography.
AWARDS
Among the highlights of the festival is the Award Ceremony for the 16th edition of the URBAN Photo Awards, held in the presence of jurors Matt Black, Paolo Verzone and Denis Curti. In addition to the main URBAN photography categories (Single Photos, Projects & Portfolios, Book Award, Press Award, Artistic Sensitivity Award, Arena), winners will also be announced for: the 8th edition of the Civic Museums Prize, TPD Best Author, and Gaze on Existence – the special award with Matt Black (25 October).
The original projects URBAN Animals, Mythography V, and Il Cantico delle Creature, as well as the winner of the 2025 Portfolio Review and Projects Selection, chosen by Matt Black for exhibition in 2026, will complete this festive highlight of the Festival.
The Festival also celebrates the artistic heritage of the Friuli Venezia Giulia region, thanks to the valued collaboration with artist, painter and sculptor Giorgio Celiberti, recognised at the Venice Biennale. Each photographer awarded at the festival will receive a unique artwork by Maestro Celiberti: a true symbol of the art and culture of the region.
The ORIGINALS – Creativity by Trieste Photo Days
Creativity has always been at the heart of dotART and Exhibit Around APS, which, in addition to organising Trieste Photo Days, develop and produce original international photographic projects. These projects involve hundreds of photographers from around the world and special guests, offering artistic challenges, thought-provoking insights, and opportunities to discover new talent.
Among the flagship projects conceived for 2025 are Mythography V, URBAN Animals, and The Canticle of the Creatures, created in collaboration with the Order of Friars Minor – OFM Fraternitas Foundation, the Faculty of Philosophy of the Pontifical Antonianum University, GPIC Friars Minor of Italy and Albania, and co-organised with the Municipality of Assisi, on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of St. Francis’ celebrated composition.
TRIESTE PHOTO DAYS 2025
Trieste Photo Days is organised by dotART cultural association and Exhibit Around APS.
General Coordination: Stefano Ambroset, founder of Trieste Photo Days
Co-founder of Trieste Photo Days: Roberto Fermo
Artistic Consultant and Photo Editor: Vincenzo Labellarte
With the contribution of: Regione Friuli Venezia Giulia – Io Sono Friuli Venezia Giulia
In collaboration with: Municipality of Trieste.
With the support of: Edilimpianti Trieste / Innovation Partner
The charitable foundations Alberto e Kathleen Casali ETS, Cooperativa Lase, InstallPro, Unicusano – Polo di Trieste.
In collaboration with: Fototeca dei Civici Musei di Storia ed Arte, Museo d’Arte Orientale, Museo Sartorio, CRAF, GO! 2025, Associazione Casa del Cinema di Trieste, La Cappella Underground, Circolo Fotografico La Gondola di Venezia, Biblioteca statale Stelio Crise, PAG – Progetto Area Giovani del Comune di Trieste, MuMeG – Museo Mercato del Gusto, Poste Italiane e Museo postale e telegrafico della Mitteleuropa, AIDIA Trieste, IN/Arch Triveneto, ITIS – Azienda pubblica di Servizi alla Persona, Trieste Airport, CIOFS and all the partners of the original projects.
FRINGE exhibition partners: AI Travi, Al Curto, Aqvedotto, Brunch Republic, Hotello, La Preferita, Il Melograno, Mimì & Cocotte, NOVO Foraperfora, Ones Trieste, Pasticceria Liberty, PURO, RADICI Ristorante , Spaccio Pani, The Modernist, White Cafè. (updating)
Media Partners: Il Fotografo, Radio Punto Zero
Digital Camera World, FRAMES, OPENEYE, Pamplemousse Magazine, PHOTO.fr, Street Photography Magazine, The Photographic Journal.
