Announcing the 2026 Aperture Portfolio Prize Shortlist

Inaugurated in 2006, the Aperture Portfolio Prize is an international competition that spotlights new talent in contemporary photography. This year’s shortlist was selected from over one thousand submissions from sixty-four countries by a jury of cross-disciplinary creatives: Taous Dahmani, curator, Photographers’ Gallery, London; Jessica Dimson, director of photography, The New York Times Magazine; Jane’a Johnson, former editor, Aperture; and Avion Pearce, artist.

The winner will be announced during The Photography Show presented by the Association of International Photography Art Dealers (AIPAD), at the Park Avenue Armory in New York, on Thursday, April 23, at 3:00 p.m. (EDT). A presentation of selected works by the shortlisted artists will be on view at The Photography Show, April 22–26, in the Photobook + Partners section of the fair, signaling the mutual commitment between AIPAD and Aperture to supporting the next generation of artists.

“As we celebrate the twentieth year of the Aperture Portfolio Prize, we proudly reflect upon the significance of recognizing artists at pivotal moments in their careers. Aperture has long been at the vanguard of identifying and publishing new voices in photography, and the Portfolio Prize has introduced audiences to artists who have gone on to make some of the most compelling contributions to the medium today,” said Sarah Meister, Executive Director, Aperture. “This year’s shortlist continues that legacy—the work of these five artists reflects the urgency, imagination, and global reach of contemporary photography.”

The shortlisted artists for the 2026 Aperture Portfolio Prize are:

Olivia Crumm constructs a world that oscillates between the surreal and the everyday to process grief, loss, and family history. Her series Wake grapples with the reverberations caused by mourning—and what remains in its aftermath.

Victor Llorente’s Folklore follows Los Andulleros de Santiago, a Dominican carnival group dedicated to preserving Dominican traditions in the US, documenting events and parades that illustrate their enduring commitment to keeping their culture alive.

Megha Singha questions current beauty standards and documents women’s lives increasingly shaped by them. I Love My Friends But They’re Killing Me analyzes the globalization of beauty culture and the ways it interacts with India’s layered system of self-representation.

Aaryan Sinha explores the ways photography has been used to reinforce colonial narratives in India. Namaste or Whatever surfaces the tension between cultural authenticity and Western expectations, and fosters a nuanced understanding of Indian identity.

Farren van Wyk explores the historical connection between South Africa and the Netherlands. Through photographs that reclaim and redefine what it means to be a person of color, Mixedness is my Mythology reflects on ideas of migration, ethnicity, colonialism, and apartheid.

Since 2006, the Aperture Portfolio Prize has published and presented an exciting range of artists whose work has pushed the medium forward. This year’s shortlisted photographers join the ranks of illustrious winners and shortlisted artists over the past two decades, including Sara Abbaspour, Felipe Romero Beltrán, Dannielle Bowman, Alejandro Cartagena, River Claure, Eli Durst, Lisa Elmaleh, LaToya Ruby Frazier, Natalie Krick, Jarod Lew, Akshay Mahajan, Mark McKnight, Zora J Murff, Gloria Oyarzábal, Avion Pearce, Alana Perino, Max Pinckers, RaMell Ross, Pacifico Silano, Donavon Smallwood, Ka-Man Tse, and many more.

The 2026 Portfolio Prize winner will have their work published in Aperture magazine, and receive a $5,000 cash prize and $1,000 gift card for MPB.com. The remaining shortlisted artists will each receive a $1,000 cash prize and recognition in an editorial feature on Aperture.org.

The 2026 Aperture Portfolio Prize is supported by MPB. Production for the presentation on view at AIPAD courtesy WhiteWall.