50 finalists in 2025 Bowness Photography Prize announced

The Museum of Australian Photography (MAPh) has announced the 50 finalists for the 2025 William & Winifred Bowness Photography Prize, selected from more than 750 entries submitted across the country.

Now in its 20th year, the annual prize continues to highlight a wide range of contemporary photographic work. For 2025, the winner will take home $50,000, with $2,500 cash also awarded to two Honourable Mentions. Shortlisted artists will also be paid loan fees for the exhibition of their works.

This year’s finalists were chosen by a judging panel comprising artist Anne Zahalka, National Gallery of Australia senior curator Shaune Lakin, and MAPh Director Anouska Phizacklea.

The list features a mix of established and emerging photographers, including Hoda Afshar, Tamara Dean, Stephen Dupont, Lilah Benetti, and Nur Aishah Abdullah Farid Kenton.

The finalist works will be exhibited later this year at the Museum of Australian Photography.

The 50 finalists are: Hoda Afshar, Riste Andrievski, Lilah Benetti, Jane E. Brown, Jane Burton, Isabella Capezio, Dave Carswell, Zoё Croggon, Zo Damage, J Davies, Gerwyn Davies, Tamara Dean, Rianon Dillon, Ella Dreyfus, Stephen Dupont, Odette England, Guy Grabowsky, Yvette Hamilton, Siri Hayes, Anna Higgins, Naomi Hobson, Ingvar Kenne, Nur Aishah Abdullah Farid Kenton, Shea Kirk, Thomas Ling, Morganna Magee, Sean McKenzie, Gerrie Mifsud, Kent Morris, Phuong Nguyen Le, Kojiro Oishi, Sean Okkai, Jill Orr, Sonia Payes, Stanislava Pinchuk, Izabela Pluta, Zorica Purlija, Eugenia Raskopoulos, Sarah Rhodes, Elvis Richardson, Jessica Schwientek, Dean Sewell, Ali Tahayori, Cyrus Tang, James Tylor, Justine Varga, Pete Volich, Kai Wasikowski, Wei Weng, and Meng-Yu Yan.