The 3rd Essen Symposium for Photography, held from February 4–5, 2026, aims at addressing interest in the medium’s prospective forms and uses. It is looking for speculations that critically engage with recent developments in the open and much-diversified field of visual media and try to position photography’s future role within such a realm.
How will photographic media participate in the dynamics of current technological advancements? How can photography impact and promote such developments with respect to social, artistic, scientific, and everyday practices? We are interested in ideas about photography’s future roles in social, artistic, scientific, and everyday realms. What will we mean when we say »photography«? Will we discuss specific techniques, aesthetics, or practices bound to visual images? Keeping the lessons taught by »operational images« in mind, will we leave the idea of the visual behind us? In short, what will be our point of reference when we address something as »photography«?
As part of the 3rd Essen Symposium for Photography, the Timm Rautert Archive will be presented for the first time. Our partner institution, Museum Folkwang, recently announced that it has assumed stewardship of the estate. To mark this occasion, the City of Essen will host a festive reception at City Hall. Unfortunately, all places for this event are already fully booked.
The symposium is fully booked. If you would like to be placed on the waiting list, please contact us at koordination |at| fotozentrum-essen.de.