The PhMuseum Days 2026 Open Call Is Now Open For Submissions

Present your work to exhibit at PhMuseum Days 2026, our International Photography Festival happening on 1-4 October in Bologna, Italy.

The 5th edition of the PhMuseum Days Open Call is now welcoming submissions, giving visual artists the opportunity to exhibit at our International Photography Festival taking place on 1-4 October in Bologna, Italy. For the first time, the festival will happen jointly with Photobook Mania, the 2nd edition of our publishing fair, offering a complete platform to enjoy contemporary photography in person.

Through this open call, at least 3 artists will be granted a solo show within the Festival’s new main venue, a project will be selected for a public installation on former municipality billboards, up to 40 single images will take part in a sculptural, collective installation, while up to 20 works will be screened.

In an era of digital fragmentation and closing borders, ARCHIPELAGO is the theme of this 5th edition. It draws inspiration from the 2005 book by Massimo Cacciari with the aim to explore crisis as both an inherent part of our journey and an opportunity to discover new models of coexistence. We are looking for projects that explore or question the cultural islands of our time, offering a space for dialogue capable of integrating the other and opening new mental horizons.

PhMuseum's Artistic Director Giuseppe Oliverio, counting on the advisorship of 3 exhibiting artists from the festival's last edition, will select at least 3 projects that will be granted an individual exhibition within the festival's main location – the newly re-opened, historical Ex Ospedale dei Bastardini in the center of the city. Each of the selected photographers will receive a production budget up to €2,500+VAT, plus an artist fee of €300 and a contribution to cover travel expenses and attend the inaugural weekend (€300 if based in Italy, €500 if coming from Europe and €800 from overseas).

Additionally, a project will be selected to be exhibited on eleven public billboards in Via dell'Abbadia, a street in the historical center of Bologna, joining the legacy of Munirah Almehri, Gloria Oyarzabal, and Mahalia Taje Giotto. Formerly belonging to the municipality of Bologna and now recovered by cultural association CHEAP, the billboards represent an opportunity to take over a street in almost its full length, reach to a broader audience, and experiment with design solutions within a given formal structure. The exhibition allows to bring pressing issues and ideas in the public space, taking an active role within the city's vibrant cultural debate. Production expenses will be fully covered, and the selected photographer will receive an artist fee of €300 and a travel expenses contribution to attend the inaugural weekend (€300 if based in Italy, €500 if coming from Europe and €800 from overseas).

Furthermore, up to 40 images will be selected for a collective sculptural installation that will challenge the main theme of the festival. As in the past editions, the chosen images will be printed on semi-transparent tissue averaging 1.60x1.80 cm, and mounted on a scaffolding pipes system giving life to a monumental visual maze. The exhibition will take over the historical courtyard of the Archiginnasio of Bologna – an iconic former main building of the University of Bologna, attracting thousands of visitors every week. Running from 19 September to 8 October, the installation radically transforms the way the Archiginnasio is perceived and lived, allowing for a sensorial and physical experience of images, and for a suggestive dialogue between history and contemporary visual language. Both applicants presenting a structured body of work and those applying with a selection of images are eligible for this installation.

Plus, up to 20 projects among all of the submissions will take part in a collective video projection that will be included in the festival's main program and screened in a dedicated area every day.

To enter, you are invited to present one or more projects featuring between 5 and 20 images delving into the theme Archipelago, and any photographic approach is welcome. All entries will be reviewed by a jury comprised of Pacifico Silano (Visual Artist), Tara L. C. Sood (Photographer and Filmmaker), Rita Puig-Serra Costa (Photographer), and Giuseppe Oliverio (PhMuseum Founding and Artistic Director). The review will happen in May, with the results being announced in June. Applicants can claim a free daily pass to attend the festival.

Artists exhibited in previous editions include Alejandro Chaskielberg, Andy Sewell, Angelica Dass, Brea Souders, 
Camilla de Maffei, Carla Liesching, 
Felicity Hammond, Gloria Oyarzabal, Leonardo Magrelli, Mahalia Taje Giotto, Marcelo Brodsky, Nikita Teryoshin, Pacifico Silano, Silvia Rosi, 
Taysir Batniji, Thomas Mailaender, Vasantha Yogananthan, and more.

The deadline is set for 7 May, while there is a reduced entry fee option until 13 April. Learn more and apply at phmuseum.com/d26