Submit photo series by March 16: August Sander Prize 2026
The application deadline for the August Sander Prize 2026 for Portrait Photography has been extended to March 16, 2026
Good news for national and international artists born on or after January 1, 1986, who would still like to submit their work (Español, Deutsch, English, Italiano, Français)
Cologne. The August Sander Prize for Portrait Photography was originally established by Ulla Bartenbach and Prof. Dr. Kurt Bartenbach. In 2026, the prize will be awarded for the fifth time in cooperation with the Photographic Collection/SK Foundation for Culture, Cologne. The prize aims to promote young, contemporary artistic approaches in the spirit of objective-conceptual photography. Against the backdrop of August Sander's significant portrait photographs, the focus is on the human portrait. The August Sander Prize is awarded every two years in Cologne. The application deadline has now been extended to March 16, 2026. Further information: www.photographie-sk-kultur.de
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| SZ-Zeppelin - Photo: Helga Waess - Press Photo Archive - Art and Culture Blog |
National and international artists born on or after January 1, 1986, specializing in photography are eligible to participate.
- The prize is endowed with €5,000.
- In addition, the Photographic Collection/SK Foundation for Culture will, if possible and upon individual consultation, organize an exhibition of the winner's work.
- Submissions should consist of a largely completed series, from which a maximum of 20 photographic prints can be selected.
- Only works that follow a thematically coherent group or sequence of images will be considered.
- Individual images will not be considered.
- Submitted works should not have received any prizes in other competitions.
- A shortlist will be published in May 2026.
- The winner, selected from the shortlist, will be announced in June 2026.
The award ceremony will take place in September 2026 at the Photographic Collection/SK Foundation for Culture in Cologne.
The jury consists of five members:
- Dr. Anja Bartenbach, founding family, Cologne;
- Dr. Franziska Brons, art historian, Berlin;
- Gabriele Conrath-Scholl, Director of the Photographic Collection/SK Foundation for Culture, Cologne;
- Jean-Paul Deridder, curator, Brussels;
- Andreas Mader, photographer, Winterthur.
