Prix Viviane Esders 2025

The Prix Viviane Esders is awarded to a professional, independent, European photographer over the age of 60 who is still active. One Laureate will be granted €50,000 and two selected finalists will receive a €5,000 prize.

Overview

Driven by the idea of discovering or rediscovering a lifetime of work, the aim of the Prize is to highlight the careers of remarkable European artists, deserving recognition and a real financial support to pursue their projects. The Prize stands out for the generosity of its endowment of €60,000 in total and its European scope.

Each year, the Viviane Esders Award honors the career of a European professional and independent photographer aged 60 and over, who has been active for several decades and demonstrates a personal style and a distinctive artistic approach.

Practical Info

The call for entries is open to professional photographers over 60 years of age, European, independent, not represented by an agency or a collective in 2025. The prize will focus on the photographer’s artistic and creative approach, both on a narrative, aesthetic an technical level. A note of intent should explain the application by highlighting the usefulness of this grant to extend his work (archive management, retrospective project, production support, etc.).

Applicants must submit the completed application form, the present rules signed, a written biography accompanied by a CV in PDF format (maximum three pages), a portfolio of 40 images (with dates and titles or captions) summarising the photographic achievement (photographs must be included in the single PDF file). The selection must be accompanied by a short overall presentation text and/or a short text per series of photographs. Plus, submissions must include a note of intent in PDF format (maximum three pages) about the usefulness of this grant to extend his work (maximum 3 pages), and a copy of a form of ID proving the age of the applicant in PDF format.

One Laureate will be granted €50,000 including €10,000 towards the production of a book to be published no later than December 31. The winner will be free to choose the publisher. It is understood that the Prix Viviane Esders is not involved in the production and additional financing of the book.

Additionally, two selected finalists will receive a €5,000 prize.

The jury, made up of six personalities from the world of art and culture, assists Viviane Esders in selecting the three nominated photographers, and among them, the winner. The Jury of the 4th edition will be revealed in March.

About Prix Viviane Esders

After more than 40 years devoted to photography as a gallery owner, expert and collector, Viviane Esders decided to deepen her commitment to photography, particularly to artists whose careers have not received the recognition they deserve. Fueled by her enduring passion for the medium, she created the Prix Viviane Esders and an endowment fund. While the Prize honours outstanding European photographers, the endowment fund has a broader mission: preserving her collection of over 2300 photographs and fostering the appreciation and dissemination of photographic art.