22 April – 24 May
The Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize is a major new annual award established to champion the excellence, vitality, and diversity of contemporary photography in Ireland.
Selected from diverse submissions across the island, the exhibition presents the First Prize Award winner, two Judges’ Selection Award winners, a Bursary Award recipient and 30 shortlisted artists selected through Ireland’s largest combined prize fund for contemporary photography, totalling €25,000.
Presented in partnership with Taylor Wessing, Photo Museum Ireland and Business to Arts, the Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize is a long-term investment in photographic practice in Ireland. The exhibition brings together new work by photographers and lens-based artists at different stages of their careers, spanning documentary, portraiture, conceptual and experimental approaches.
Above: © Polina Cosgrave, Princes of Ballyfermot, 2025
Banner image: © James Mahon, 2 – Storyboard, 2024 from the series To win just once
Winners of the Inaugural Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize
We’re were thrilled to announce the winners of the inaugural Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize at a major awards ceremony on 21 April 2026 at Photo Museum Ireland, recognising outstanding contemporary photography from across Ireland.
- Conor Horgan — Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize Winner
- Laura Dunwoody — Judges’ Selection Award Winner
- Salem Anowe Chukwuezi — Judges’ Selection Award Winner
- Patryk Gizicki — Photo Bursary Award Winner
Congratulations to all our Shortlisted Artists
Chad Alexander, Salem Anowe Chukwuezi, Philip Arneill, Niamh Barry, Lisa Bennett, Deirdre Brennan, Missy Brinkmeyer, Michael Cassidy, Ishmael Claxton, Polina Cosgrave, Shane Coughlan, Michael Croghan, Evanna Devine, Laura Dunwoody, Patryk Gizicki, Cat Gundry-Beck, Caroline Guinan, Conor Horgan, Shane Hynan, JP Keating, Joe Laverty, Xuying Li, Jeanette Lowe, James Mahon, Jillian McGrath, Yvette Monahan, Emma O’Brien, Clodagh O’Leary, Mandy O’Neill, Keelin O’Shea, Chris Reid, Emily Roche, Blaise Smith, Laura Smith.
The Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Bursary 2026
This €10,000 award has been established to support an artist working in photography or lens-based media who identifies as being from an underrepresented background. The Bursary aims to facilitate time and space through financial resources to enable the recipient to further develop their practice. See submission guidelines below.
The Exhibition & Taylor Wessing Collection
Winning and shortlisted works will feature in a major public exhibition at Photo Museum Ireland from 22 April – 24 May 2026, accompanied by a national and international media campaign, after which the winning works will become part of the Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize collection that will be displayed at Taylor Wessing offices.
This initiative builds on Taylor Wessing’s longstanding support of photography through its sponsorship of the Taylor Wessing Photo Portrait Prize since 2008 at the National Portrait Gallery in the UK.
First Prize Winner
One Winner
€10,000
Judges’ Selection Prizes
Two Winners
€2,500 each
€10,000 Artist Bursary
One Winner
A separate award for a photographer from an underrepresented community.
€100 exhibiting honorarium
Up to 30 winners
A special award for shortlisted artists who will feature in the exhibition next Spring.
Explore the Virtual Exhibition
At Photo Museum Ireland, we’re committed to making contemporary photography accessible to everyone, regardless of where you are. Our virtual exhibitions allow you to engage with the depth and artistry of our in-gallery displays from the comfort of your own space.
We foster inclusivity by ensuring our digital exhibitions are accessible to all.
The 2026 Theme
Community | Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine
For its inaugural edition in 2026, the prize invites artists to explore the powerful theme of Community.
An ancient Irish proverb, Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine, teaches us that it is in each other’s shadow that we live. This speaks to a fundamental truth of Irish life: our identities are shaped by connection, interdependence, and shared experience.
In a time of profound global change, shaped by digital connectivity and a search for belonging, the concept of community is more essential than ever. The Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize 2026 asks artists to share their unique visual reflections on what it means to live together in Ireland today. We seek work that investigates the bonds, both visible and invisible,that tie us together.
© JP Keating, Courtown Woods, 2024, from the series Documented Males / Life at the Courtown Hotel
We welcomed submissions across all photographic genres, including portraiture, documentary, conceptual, and experimental practices. The prize showcases work that looks at:
Theme & Contemporary Culture
How strongly the work responds to the theme Community and reflects the realities, identities, and experiences of life today in Ireland.
Creativity & Originality
How fresh, distinctive, and imaginative the work is — showing new ideas, personal vision, or inventive approaches.
Technical Skill & Execution
The quality of the image-making, including composition, lighting, focus, and confident use of the chosen medium.
Impact & Storytelling
How powerfully the work connects with viewers — its emotional depth, clarity of intent, and ability to convey a story or atmosphere.
Ethical Representation
Respectful and responsible depiction of people and communities, with attention to consent, context, and fairness.
Meet our expert Irish & International Judging Panel
Anne Nwakalor
Anne Nwakalor is a British-Nigerian curator, artist and writer working within the photography field. She is currently based in Manchester, UK and is the Founding Editor of one of Africa’s first contemporary photography magazines, No! Wahala Magazine print photography publication championing authentic visual stories told by African creatives. Her practice developed while studying a BA in Photojournalism and Documentary Photography at the University of the Arts London and a Master’s in Media, Ethics, and Social Change at the University of Sussex. Her interests revolve around ethical storytelling within the photography space, Afrofuturism, representation, and elitism within the art world, alongside a range of other topics. Anne often integrates text and moving images into her work, creating multimedia pieces alongside still photography. She has facilitated workshops, curated exhibitions, reviewed portfolios, and served on photography juries for organisations and institutions, including World Press Photo, Magnum Photos, Foam Magazine, Format Festival, Paris College of Art, Photo Museum Ireland, and Manchester Metropolitan University. She has featured on panels for numerous photography contests, reviewed work at several portfolio reviews, and delivered presentations, talks and lectures at universities, exhibitions, art events and photo festivals.
Fintan O'Toole
Fintan O’Toole is one of Ireland’s foremost public intellectuals, whose work sits at the intersection of politics, history, culture and literature. He writes with clarity and depth about how decisions—both bold and flawed—reshape lives.
Since 1988, he has been a columnist for The Irish Times, and he contributes to The New Yorker, The Guardian, The New York Review of Books, among others. He also previously served as Leonard L Milberg Professor of Irish Letters at Princeton University.
O’Toole has authored around 25 books spanning topics such as Irish identity, literature, Brexit, and political critique. His accolades include the Orwell Prize, the European Press Prize, and the 2024 Robert B. Silvers Prize for “inclusive political commentary.” Currently, he is writing the official biography of Seamus Heaney.
In his lectures and writings, he invites audiences to see their own role in shaping history and to reflect critically on power, identity, and progress.
Zoe Harrison
Zoe Harrison is a Northern Irish curator, project manager, and photographer based in east London. Currently Head of Awards and Partnerships at British Journal of Photography, the world’s longest-running photography title. Here, she curates magazine’s prestigious awards program, including Portrait of Humanity, OpenWalls, Female in Focus, BJP IPA and Portrait of Britain, and oversees partnerships and collaborations with the publication with organisations like WeTransfer, Nikon and Bodleian Libraries. She has been invited to review portfolios at a number of institutions and events such as PHotoESPAÑA, LCC, Falmouth University, and Nottingham Trent University; and serve on the juries of the Indian Photo Festival and Format Festival.
Trish Lambe
Trish Lambe is the Artistic Director/CEO at Photo Museum Ireland, Ireland’s national centre for contemporary photography. She leads the artistic programming team and the development of the museum’s collection initiative. She has curated solo and group exhibitions featuring leading Irish and international artists, and programmed national and international commissions, exhibitions, events, and symposia that address key issues in contemporary photography. Recent projects include a survey of the development of photography in Ireland, co-curated with Photo Museum Ireland’s curatorial team and the co-curation of the award-winning Akihiko Okamura ‘The Memories of Others’ exhibition and photo book. She is a nominator, juror and portfolio reviewer for national and international artists’ awards and commissions, most recently the Deutsche Börse Prize, LSI Women in Photography Grant, Prix Pictet, Format, Rencontres d’Arles, Hendrik teNeues Photo Award, Encontros da Imagen, Braga and the Creative Europe Project Groundswell Awards.
Darren Campion
Darren Campion is a curator at Photo Museum Ireland. In 2022, he co-curated two major surveys of contemporary Irish photography, The Politics of Place and Photography & the Social Gaze. With Trish Lambe, Artistic Director of Photo Museum Ireland, he curated “No Place Like Home: The Domestic in Irish Photography,” a survey of recent photographic representations of home in Ireland. He has also written extensively about contemporary photographic practices, particularly around visual narrative and the photobook. He has contributed to international publications and websites, including FOAM, Paper Journal, YET magazine, Photomonitor, and the Irish Arts Review, as well as essays and texts for several artists’ monographs, including Thomas Albdorf’s General View (Skinnerboox, 2017) and Aapo Huhta’s Omatandangole (Kehrer Verlag, 2019). In 2024, he curated Skin/Deep: Perspectives on a Body, a Photo Museum Ireland survey exhibition that considered ‘other’ experiences of the body through photography and lens-based media.
In The Press
Educational Resources
Taylor Wessing
Irish Photo Prize 2026
Young People’s Guide
A mobile-friendly resource with questions and creative prompts to help young audiences explore the four award winning artist’s work in the Taylor Wessing Portrait Prize 2026.
Large Print Exhibition Guide
Our Large Print Exhibition Guide is designed to make exhibitions more accessible for visitors who are visually impaired, or prefer larger text. Physical copies are available for free in the gallery space and at front desk.
This guide includes all key exhibition information such as introductory texts, artwork labels, and artist details in a clear, easy-to-read format with enlarged font and high contrast design.
You can also download a pdf here for easy access on smartphones and tablets, allowing you to engage with the exhibition at your own pace—whether in the gallery or from home.
Events/Workshops
1:00 pm to 3:00 pm
Thursday, 14 May 2026
Photo Museum Ireland
Azure is a free experience designed for people living with dementia and their families and friends. During Azure, you will explore 3 selections of artwork from Photo Museum Ireland’s current exhibition with a facilitator who has received Azure training in dementia-inclusive arts programming. Armchair edition - online event
Cost : Free
12:00 pm to 12:45 pm
Tuesday, 19 May 2026
Photo Museum Ireland
A guided tour of the exhibition delivered in Irish Sign Language, providing full access to the artworks, themes, and curatorial context.
Cost : Free for everyone
7:00 pm to 8:30 pm
Tuesday, 12 May 2026
Photo Museum Ireland
Join us for a dynamic artist-in-conversation event with the winners of the Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize 2026, Conor Horgan (Overall Winner), Salem Anowe Chukwuezi and Laura Dunwoody (Judges’ Selections), led by Photo Museum Ireland.
Cost : Free for everyone
1:00 pm to
Wednesday, 29 April 2026
Photo Museum Ireland
Joining one of our guided tours is a great way to get to know our exhibitions in more detail. Our experienced guides are extremely knowledgeable about photography in general, and each exhibition in particular. Tours are free of charge, although booking is required.
Cost : Free
10:00 am to 2:00 pm
Monday, 11 May 2026
Photo Museum Ireland
Photo Museum Ireland is delighted to welcome participants from RehabCare Bray, Co. Wicklow for a special visit and creative workshop inspired by the Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize Exhibition.
This engaging programme begins with an accessible guided exploration of the exhibition, where participants will discover selected artworks and discuss themes of identity, community, storytelling and contemporary photography.
Cost : Free
11:00 am to 1:00 pm
Thursday, 21 May 2026
Photo Museum Ireland
Photo Museum Ireland are delighted to be working with Culture Club to offer a tour of the Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize 2026 and a Digital Negatives and Darkroom printing workshop.
Cost : Free
7:00 pm to 8:30 pm
Thursday, 21 May 2026
Photo Museum Ireland
Join us for a special artist-in-conversation event with Patryk Gizicki, recipient of the Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Bursary 2026.
Cost : Free for everyone
12:00 am to 1:00 pm
Wednesday, 20 May 2026
Photo Museum Ireland
An introductory tour for school and third-level groups exploring highlights from the Taylor Wessing Irish Photography Prize 2026. Discover key works and themes in contemporary photography through a guided, accessible experience.
Cost : Free
5:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Thursday, 21 May 2026
Photo Museum Ireland
Come and join a friendly, behind-the-scenes tour of the Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize with curator, Darren Campion.
Step inside our Darkroom and Artist Digital Studio with Darragh followed by tea, coffee, and chats with fellow members.
Cost : Free for Members
12:00 am to 1:00 pm
Friday, 22 May 2026
Photo Museum Ireland
A calm, supported way to experience the Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize 2026.
These dedicated hours are designed for visitors with autism, sensory processing differences, or anyone who would benefit from a quieter, more relaxed gallery environment. During this time, lighting is softened, background noise is reduced, and visitor numbers are kept low—creating a more predictable and comfortable space to explore at your own pace.
Cost : Free for everyone
12:00 am to
Sunday, 24 May 2026
Photo Museum Ireland
Experience the Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize through an inclusive and sensory-rich tour designed to support blind and visually impaired visitors.
This audio described tour offers detailed verbal descriptions of selected artworks, exploring composition, subject matter, tone, and context to bring each photograph to life. Braille captions are available for key works, providing accessible written information alongside the audio experience.