Artist Aaryan Sinha Awarded the Twentieth Annual Aperture Portfolio Prize

New York, April 23, 2026—Aperture is pleased to announce photographer Aaryan Sinha as the winner of the 2026 Aperture Portfolio Prize, marking the twentieth annual conferring of this award. Sinha was selected from a shortlist of five artists that included Olivia Crumm, Victor Llorente, Megha Singha, and Farren van Wyk.

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, curator and former editor, Aperture; and Avion Pearce, artist.

In the Photobook + Partners section of The Photography Show, a presentation of selected works by the shortlisted artists is on view through April 26, signaling the mutual commitment between AIPAD and Aperture to supporting the next generation of artists. A panel discussion among the shortlisted artists will take place on Saturday, April 25, as part of the fair’s AIPAD Talks series.

“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. “Aaryan Sinha and the other artists recognized on this year’s shortlist continue that legacy. Their work reflects the urgency, imagination, and global reach of contemporary photography.”

Sinha’s winning submission, Namaste or Whatever, examines the tension between cultural authenticity and global expectations and fosters a nuanced understanding of Indian identity. As the first-prize winner, Sinha will be featured in Aperture’s summer issue releasing in June and will receive a $5,000 cash prize and a $1,000 gift card at MPB.com. The four shortlisted artists will each receive a $1,000 cash prize and an editorial feature on Aperture.org. To preview the Summer 2026 issue, featuring the article on Sinha by Chris Wiley, or to learn more about the other shortlisted artists, visit Aperture.org.

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Aaryan Sinha (born in New Delhi, India, 2001) is a photographer and artist based in India and Europe. His work explores the shifting nature of Indian identity within a Western context, engaging with themes of colonialism, personal memory, cultural appropriation, and intergenerational inheritance. Using photography, archival material, and text, Sinha interrogates dominant narratives and visual clichés, striving instead for a more layered and self-aware representation of his homeland. Sinha’s work has been exhibited at Luma Arles, France; Nederlands Fotomuseum, Rotterdam; and Belfast Photo Festival, among others.

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About the Aperture Portfolio Prize  

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

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About Aperture

Aperture is a nonprofit publisher that leads conversations around photography worldwide. From its base in New York, Aperture connects global audiences and supports artists through its acclaimed quarterly magazine, books, exhibitions, digital platforms, public programs, limited-edition prints, and awards. Established in 1952 to advance “creative thinking, significantly expressed in words and photographs,” Aperture champions photography’s vital role in nurturing curiosity and encouraging a more just, tolerant society. For more information, visit Aperture.org.

Aperture’s programs and operations are made possible by the generosity of our board of trustees, our members, and other individuals, and with major support from Bobby Campbell Charitable Fund, Coach, David Dechman and Michel Mercure, Susan and Thomas Dunn, FotoFocus, Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, Celso M. Gonzalez-Falla, William Talbot Hillman Foundation, Joy of Giving Something, Anne Levy Charitable Trust, Mailman Foundation, Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation, James McKinney, Richard and Ronay Menschel, Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, Robert Motherwell and Renate Ponsold, Neuberger Berman, New York City Council, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council on the Arts, Ms. Eliot Nolen of the Mary P. Oenslager Foundation Fund, Yesim and Dusty Philip, Theodore and Mary Jo Shen, Diane Sherman, Michael W. Sonnenfeldt/MUUS Collection, Jon Stryker and Slobodan Randjelović, Jane Smith Turner Foundation, Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, and Wyeth Foundation for American Art.

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Press contact:
Lauren Van Natten, Aperture, publicity@aperture.org