VAiF26 — Photography Portfolio Open Call 2026

The Visual Arts International Festival (VAiF) is an annual festival of contemporary visual arts held in Thessaloniki, Greece, organised by the esp+ photography school. The 2026 edition (VAiF26) is built around a Photography Portfolio Open Call seeking cohesive bodies of work with a strong artistic vision, a contemporary approach, and a personal mode of storytelling.

Selected portfolios are exhibited together as part of VAiF26 in Thessaloniki in November 2026. The festival covers production and exhibition costs; entries are free and open to photographers aged 18 or over from anywhere in the world. Notification of results is sent by email and announced on the festival website and social channels.

The 2026 jury combines curatorial and academic voices in Greek photography: independent curator, photographer and photography educator Stergios Karavatos; Stefanos Kesidis, Artistic Director of VAiF and Deputy Director of the esp+ photography school; Anastasia Markidou, Associate Professor and Director of the MA programme 'Photography: Research and Methodology'; and Manolis Skoufias, Director of Studies at esp+ and PhD in Photography.

Photographers submit one portfolio of up to 10 cohesive images, each at least 1500 pixels on the longest side and 150 dpi or higher, in .jpg, .jpeg, .png or .pdf format, with the total ZIP under 25 MB. Each entry requires a project title, artist statement, biography, artist portrait and full contact information. The deadline is Sunday, May 31, 2026 at 23:59 GMT.