Fotograf Magazine

We are pleased to present the results of our Open Call 2022, which was assessed by an international committee of photographers and curators of contemporary photography consisting of: 

Francois Deschamps
Thale Fastvold
Verena Kaspar-Eisert
Kateryna Radchenko
Olia Triaška Stefanović
István Virágvölgyi

Removing the thematic constraints, which we usually place in our Open Calls, has opened up the space for artists to submit visual projects of different genres and approaches that constitute a clearly defined entity of their own with an independent and non-commercial character. Out of almost a hundred submitted projects, the committee selected three talents whom we would like to congratulate and who will be published in the next issue of the FOTOGRAF magazine. In the global context, the magazine ranks among the most important publications dedicated to contemporary photography and its English version is distributed in 15 countries worldwide.

Congratulations to the selected photographers and thank you to all who entered!

Marija Mandić

White Bee (2021-ongoing)

Marija Mandić (1990) is an artist working mostly with photography who lives and works between Novi Sad (SRB) and Prague (CZ). Marija is interested in the past and memory, which she explores mostly through familial context. In 2022, she obtained PhD in Visual Communication at the Faculty of Art and Design in Ústí nad Labem (CZ). 

“Relations between public and private spheres were the primary occupations of my works so far. This interest was explored through the mediums of photography, text, drawings, video, and installations in public spaces. In the past few years, I started working mainly with analogue photography, archival material, and text. The subject matter also narrowed down to the notions of memory and past, which I explore through familial context. Although my works speak about my family mythology, I aim to address more broad social issues through this private framework.”

Instagram – @saobracaj9

Nicola Moscelli

Dead End (2022)

Nicola Moscelli (1980) is an Italian photographer and documentarist. In his projects, he uses the photographic medium as well as archival material to explore and reflect upon contemporary issues and create narratives with a particular focus on the environment and the way humankind relates to it. After graduating from electronic engineering, he started experimenting with photography in all its formats. He has been living in Madrid, Vienna and Munich. He currently lives in The Hague where he works in the intellectual property field.

“In the past years, the world has been witnessing a rapid proliferation of border walls. None of the continents has been spared from this relentless process of border reinforcement and fortification. Ultimately, this new age of border walls reflects the dysfunctions and contradictions of globalization. The border between the U.S. and Mexico represents the archetype of this phenomenon. As a matter of fact, by looking at the history of this border, it is possible to foresee many of the issues that the newly fortified borders in the rest of the world will experience. This documentary work aims to visually investigate the U.S.-Mexico border in terms of its impact on people’s lives, culture and history, perceived as elements of a joint higher narrative: the dead end. The series is entirely based on Google Street View imagery and archival material.”

Instagram – @nicolamoscelli

Lan Xi Ruan

Soft Animal (2021)

While living abroad in Germany (Berlin) during the third lockdown, Chinese artist Lan Xi Ruan (1991) created a series of minimalist staged photographs on multiple nightly walks with her friends. After years of staying away from her homeland, she decided to tell her personal story of nostalgia, belonging, and feelings of displacement. 

“In ‘Soft Animal’, I attempt to transform my psychological state into a surreal dreamlike tale with the protagonists seen as creatures, animals isolated in nature, trying to hide from an unseen predator or becoming one themselves. In an interaction with their surroundings by exposing moments of childlike playfulness, I create a new world, a mysterious playground in which the feelings of solitude and danger coexist.”

Instagram – @ruanlanxi