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Final Call to enter All About Photo Awards: $5,000 Cash Prizes - Juror Steve McCurry
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Andreas Franke
Andreas Franke
Andreas Franke

Andreas Franke

Country: Austria

Andreas Franke is in the business for more than twenty years. For Luerzer‘s Archive he is among the 200 Best Photographers. He worked for great brands like Ben&Jerry's, Coca-Cola, Ford, General Electric, Gillette, Heineken, Nike, Visa or Wrigley‘s. His still lifes and his surreal effects are famous. In his pictures every little detail is planned precisely. There is no space left for fortuity. Andreas Franke is a traveler. He travels through the world and between the worlds. His job frequently leads him to several countries on several continents. So does his passion the scuba diving. In his pictures Franke crosses the borderlines between fantasy and real life.

With his project “The Sinking World“ Andreas Franke brings a strange, forgotten underwater world back to life and stages realms of an unprecedented kind.
The pictures engender extreme polarities: the soft, secretive underwater emptiness of sleeping shipwrecks is paired with real, authentic sceneries full of liveliness and vigor, thus creating a new world, equally bizarre and irresistibly entangling. The resting giants at the bottom of the sea do not only form fascinating and unique backgrounds for Andreas Franke’s sceneries. They also constitute the best exhibition sites imaginable. These spectacular underwater galleries make divers fall under their spell and display the work of the ocean itself. During the weeks and months under water the ocean bequeaths impressive, peerless traces to the pictures. It adorns them with a certain, peculiar patina, endowing them with the countenance of bizarre evanescence and transfiguring them into rare beauties.
 

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More Great Photographers To Discover

Bernd and Hilla Becher
In the realm of photography, Bernd and Hilla Becher are celebrated as pioneers whose work not only revolutionized the perception of industrial landscapes but also shaped the course of conceptual photography in the 20th century. Born in Germany, Bernd Becher (1931–2007) and Hilla Becher (1934–2015) met as students at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf in the late 1950s, where they forged a partnership both personally and professionally that would endure for over five decades. Bernd initially studied painting before shifting his focus to photography under the tutelage of the eminent photographer Otto Steinert. It was during this period that he began to develop his signature style characterized by precise, objective, black-and-white images of industrial structures. Hilla, meanwhile, studied graphic and printing techniques, which would later prove instrumental in the meticulous printing process integral to their photographic work. The couple's collaboration blossomed as they embarked on a lifelong mission to document the vanishing industrial landscape of post-war Germany and beyond. Their photographs primarily featured industrial structures such as mine shafts, water towers, gas tanks, and blast furnaces, meticulously captured with a straightforward, documentary approach devoid of sentimentality or subjective interpretation. What set the Bechers apart was their systematic approach to photography. They meticulously cataloged these structures, arranging them in grids or typologies that emphasized the inherent beauty and functional aesthetics of these often-overlooked forms. Their work transcended mere documentation, offering viewers a profound meditation on the intersection of industry, architecture, and human labor. Throughout their career, the Bechers remained dedicated to their craft, tirelessly traveling across Europe and the United States to capture industrial sites before they disappeared due to modernization and economic shifts. Their influence extended beyond their own photographic output; they also imparted their knowledge and passion for photography as educators at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, where they mentored numerous students who would go on to make significant contributions to the field. Bernd and Hilla Becher's legacy endures not only through their extensive body of work but also through the impact they had on subsequent generations of photographers. Their commitment to preserving and elevating the industrial landscape through photography transformed the perception of these structures, elevating them to objects of aesthetic contemplation and cultural significance. Today, their photographs are cherished as timeless artifacts that capture the beauty and dignity of the industrial age, ensuring that their legacy will endure for generations to come.
Marcin Owczarek
Poland
1985
My art has always been focusing on condition of our globe and the condition of man. My antiutopian, critical photography is based on the anthropological research. I focus on exploring and interpreting the impact of: new technologies, bio-science, unconscious, fears, morals, social situations, behaviors, habits, rituals, biological changes, the use of animals, depression in urban envi...ronments, destruction of the soil, overpopulation, deforestation, universal famine and - over human life. As a result, I create the image of the 21 century and the image of our current society. In this way, by commenting behaviour of human individuals I want to indicate that: Man is imperfect. Man is a savage, greedy rebel of Nature, living between the insanity and lunacy, away from his true nature. Man live in the play cage because he was captured by Illusions of this world: welfare tyranny, desire of possessing material things, consumption, jealousy, hate...what all in all led him to the broken relationship with the globe and other human beings. As a result I stress the present process of dehumanization, mechanization and standardization of human race, false norms and illusional values that was given for the truth to the society by religion, governments,laws,propaganda, false mirror of the television...etc. In my opinion, nowadays it is essential to articulate this kind of behavior, because the way which the present world run, might guide the human species: firstly- into a total slavery, then to new nuclear era, and finally to the total extinction...There is number of potential scenarios, but one of them is definitely Total Extinction... I admire the way of dadaism as well as surrealism. My spirit flies with counterculture and the idea of transgression. I regard my critical collages as the prediction of human degradation, and as a consequence - 'Apocalypse'....... Many wise people said that before but I will repeat: we are responsible for this world and for other human beings, and in our hands is decision: Do we want to live in coexistence or do want to reproduce another monsters to this world who will fight against each other in another nuclear war... What are the crucial implications of this? - The world's Future. "You pays your money and you takes your choice".Marcin Owczarek, Lier 2011
Mona Kuhn
Brazil
1969
Acclaimed for her contemporary depictions, Kuhn is considered a leading artist in the world of figurative discourse. Throughout a career spanning more than twenty years, the underlying theme of her work is her reflection on humanity's longing for spiritual connection and solidarity. As she solidified her photographic style, Kuhn created a notable approach to the nude by developing friendships with her subjects, and employing a range of playful visual strategies that use natural light and minimalist settings to evoke a sublime sense of comfort between the human figure and its environment. Her work is natural, restful, and a reinterpretation of the nude in the canon of contemporary art. For the past two decades, the Los-Angeles based artist's works have been shown steadily, revealing an astonishing consistency in technique, of subject and of purpose. In 2001, Kuhn's photographs were first seen by an influential audience during the exhibition at Charles Cowles Gallery in Chelsea, New York. Kuhn's distinct aesthetic has propelled her as one of the most collectible contemporary art photographers-her work is in private and public collections worldwide and she is represented by galleries across the United States, Europe and Asia. Kuhn was born in São Paulo, Brazil, in 1969, of German descent. In 1989, Kuhn moved to the US and earned her BA from The Ohio State University, before furthering her studies at the San Francisco Art Institute. She is currently an independent scholar at The Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles. Occasionally, Mona teaches at UCLA and the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. Mona Kuhn's first monograph, Photographs, was debuted by Steidl in 2004; followed by Evidence (2007), Native (2010), Bordeaux Series (2011), Private (2014), and She Disappeared into Complete Silence (2018/19). In addition, Kuhn's monograph titled Bushes and Succulents has been published by Stanley/Barker Editions, with a debut at Jeu de Paume in Paris, in 2019. A stunning career retrospective of Mona Kuhn's Works has been published by Thames & Hudson, Spring 2021. Kuhn's forthcoming publication Kings Road, will be published and released by Steid this Spring 2022. Mona Kuhn's work is in private and public collections worldwide, including The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The Hammer Museum, Perez Art Museum Miami, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and the Kiyosato Museum in Japan. Kuhn's work has been exhibited at The Louvre Museum and Le Bal in Paris; The Whitechapel Gallery and Royal Academy of Arts in London; Musée de l'Elysée in Switzerland; Leopold Museum in Vienna Austria, The Polygon Gallery in Vancouver Canada, Taipei Fine Arts Museum in Taiwan and Australian Centre for Photography. Mona Kuhn lives and works in Los Angeles. I'm most comfortable representing the nude as minimal and timeless. I like to cherish the body as a source of inspiration, as a platform for metaphors, for intimacy and complexities of human nature. It is my way of investigating the deepest questions about life. -- Mona Kuhn Articles Selected Works at Galeri XII Paris Paradise Lost at Jackson Fine Art Works at Galeri XII Los Angeles Between Modernism and Surrealism at Edwynn Houk Gallery
Aleksander Rodchenko
Russia
1891 | † 1956
Aleksander Rodchenko was a Russian and Soviet artist, sculptor, photographer, and graphic designer who emerged following the Russian Revolution. He was one of the founders of Russian Constructivist and a Productivist artist, married to artist Varvara Stepanova. He began his career as a painter and graphic designer before moving on to photomontage and photography. His photography was socially involved, formally creative, and anti-painting. Concerned about the necessity for analytical-documentary picture series, Aleksander Rodchenko frequently shot his subjects from unusual angles—usually high above or low below—in order to shock the viewer and delay recognition. "One has to shoot several distinct photos of a subject, from diverse points of view and in varied settings, as though one viewed it in the round rather than looking through the same key-hole over and over," he wrote. Only the camera seems to be really capable of describing modern life. -- Aleksander Rodchenko Aleksander Mikhailovich Rodchenko was born in St. Petersburg to a working-class family that relocated to Kazan when his father died in 1909. He became an artist without any prior exposure to the art world, relying mostly on art periodicals for inspiration. Aleksander Rodchenko began studies at the Kazan Art School in 1910, under Nicolai Fechin and Georgii Medvedev, when he met Varvara Stepanova, whom he eventually married. The critic Osip Brik, 1924© Aleksander Rodchenko Following 1914, he continued his artistic education at the Stroganov Institute in Moscow, where he created his first abstract drawings in 1915, influenced by Kazimir Malevich's Suprematism. The following year, he took part in The Store, an exhibition organized by another formative influence, Vladimir Tatlin. Rodchenko's work was influenced heavily by Cubism and Futurism, as well as Malevich's Suprematist compositions, which featured geometric forms deployed against a white background. Aleksander Rodchenko was Tatlin's student and assistant, and the interest in figuration that characterized Rodchenko's early work faded as he experimented with design elements. He created his paintings with a compass and ruler, with the goal of eliminating expressive brushwork. Rodchenko worked for Narkompros and was one of the RABIS organizers. RABIS was founded between 1919 and 1920. In 1920, the Bolshevik government appointed Rodchenko as Director of the Museum Bureau and Purchasing Fund, with responsibility for the reorganization of art schools and museums. He became the secretary of the Moscow Artists' Union, established the Fine Arts Division of the People's Commissariat for Education, and assisted in the establishment of the Institute for Artistic Culture. From 1920 to 1930, he was a teacher at the Higher Technical-Artistic Studios, a Bauhaus organization with a "checkered career." It ceased operations in 1930. In 1921, Aleksander Rodchenko joined the Productivist group, along with Stepanova and Aleksei Gan, to advocate for the incorporation of art into everyday life. He abandoned painting to focus on graphic design for posters, books, and films. He was profoundly influenced by the ideas and practice of filmmaker Dziga Vertov, with whom he collaborated extensively in 1922. Impressed by the German Dadaists' photomontage, Rodchenko began his own experiments in the medium, first using found images in 1923, and then shooting his own photographs from 1924 on. In 1923, his first published photomontage illustrated Mayakovsky's poem About This. Rodchenko created his most famous poster in 1924, an advertisement for the Lengiz Publishing House titled Books, which features a young woman with a cupped hand shouting "Books in all branches of knowledge," printed in modernist typography. Photography has all the rights, and all the merits, necessary for us to turn towards it as the art of our time. -- Aleksander Rodchenko Portrait of the Artist’s Mother, 1924© Aleksander Rodchenko From 1923 to 1928, Rodchenko worked closely with Mayakovsky (of whom he took several portraits) on the design and layout of LEF and Novy LEF, Constructivist artists' publications. Many of his photographs were published in or used as covers for these and other publications. His images were concerned with the placement and movement of objects in space, as well as the elimination of unnecessary detail. During this time, he and Stepanova painted the well-known panels of Moscow's Mosselprom building. Varvara Rodchenko, their daughter, was born in 1925. Rodchenko's work was very abstract throughout the 1920s. He joined the October Group of artists in 1928, but was expelled three years later after being accused of "formalism," an accusation first leveled in the pages of Sovetskoe Foto in 1928. In the 1930s, as the Party's guidelines governing artistic practice shifted in favor of Socialist realism, he focused on sports photography and images of parades and other choreographed movements. In the late 1930s, Aleksander Rodchenko returned to painting, stopped photographing in 1942, and produced abstract expressionist works in the 1940s. Throughout these years, he continued to organize photography exhibitions for the government. In 1956, he died in Moscow.
Abhishek Basak
Abhishek Basak is a professional freelance photographer specializing in travel, people, and documentary photography. Based in India, he has been dedicated to capturing compelling images and sharing the art of photography for over seven years. His journey in this field has been one of continuous exploration, boundless learning, and an unwavering passion for storytelling through the lens. He has served as a photography teacher at a distinguished school in Kolkata and continues to mentor aspiring photographers in various aspects, including post-processing. He is also a co-mentor for AH Photography Expedition, where he organizes photography tours and workshops to inspire and guide budding talent. He has achieved prestigious distinctions such as EFIP (Excellence FIP) and EFIAP (Excellence FIAP). He has mentored two National Geographic photographers from Poland. He has judged many national and international photography competitions. His photographs have been exhibited in more than 130 countries worldwide. He has been honoured with the Best Photographer Award over 70 times in international competitions held in countries like France, Luxembourg, Serbia, Bulgaria, Belgium, Ukraine, South Africa, Slovenia, Italy, and more. In India, he has received this distinction over 100 times in national competitions, amassing a total of more than 3000 awards across national and international contests. Awards and Honors: · HIPA Finalist in both 2018 and 2023. · First Indian to win the One Eyeland Photography Award 2024. · Winner in 35 Awards 2022. · Winner in Agora Photography Competition. · Winner in Black & White Photo Award. · Winner in World Photography Club Competition. · Winner in FIP Monthly Photography Competition. · Winner in India Photography Summit 2024. · Winner in Photography Club of Assam photo contest. · Winner in NAP Photo contest, Dhanbad Camera Club. · First Indian to win an award from Taichung Photo Award. · Honourable Mention at the KAFF International Contest. · Finalist in the prestigious SIENA International Photo Awards. · Finalist in Urban Photo Awards & Vanguard Photo contest, and many more. · In 2022, he earned 2nd place nationally in the EISA International Photography Competition, a distinguished honour in the field of photography. Publications: · His photographs have been featured in globally acclaimed publications and platforms, including National Geographic, Getty Reportage, The Bangla Live, Chiiz, Asian Photography Magazine, Smart Photography Magazine, Travellers’ World, Viewfinder, The Guardian, and Uttarbanga Sangbad. His work has also been published in major Indian media outlets, including Anandabazar, Eisamay, Bartaman, Anandabahar, Uttarbanga Sangbad, and Outlook Traveller, among others. Kulasai Dussehra: Kulasai Dussehra, celebrated in Kulasekarapattinam, Tamil Nadu, is one of South India's most unique and vibrant festivals. Unlike the traditional Dussehra festivities across India, which often center on Lord Rama's victory over Ravana, Kulasai Dussehra is marked by grand processions and intense devotion to Goddess Mutharamman, who is believed to be an incarnation of Durga. Thousands of devotees dress in various forms of gods, goddesses, and mythical figures, bringing alive the region's deep-rooted cultural and religious traditions.This festival showcases one of the diverse ways Dussehra is celebrated. It represents the triumph of good over evil while highlighting local traditions, beliefs, and artistic expressions. My photos of this event, taken in a 24-hour cycle covering start to finish, capture the fervour, colours, and deep spirituality of the festival, making it a cultural experience that deserves wider recognition and appreciation. Understanding Kulasai Dussehra broadens our view of India's rich heritage.
Francesco Zizola
Since the 1980's Francesco Zizola (Italy, 1962) has documented the world's major conflicts and their hidden crisis, focusing on the social and humanitarian issues that define life in the developing world as well as in western countries. A strong ethical commitment and a distinctive aesthetic eye are specific features of his pictures. His assignments and personal projects have taken him around the world, giving him the opportunity to carefully portray forgotten crises and relevant issues often disregarded by the mainstream media. He received several awards over the years, including ten awards in World Press Photo contests and six Picture of the Year International awards (POYi). Francesco published seven books, among which Uno Sguardo Inadeguato (Collana Grandi Autori, FIAF, 2013), Iraq (Ega/Amnesty International, 2007) and Born Somewhere (Delpire/Fusi Orari, 2004), extensive work on the living conditions of children from 27 different countries. In 2003 Henri Cartier Bresson included one of Francesco's pictures among his 100 favorites. This collection was made into an exhibition - Les Choix d'Henri Cartier Bresson - and a book. In 2007 Francesco founded with a group of colleagues Noor photo agency, based in Amsterdam. In 2008 he founded 10b Photography (Rome, Italy), a multipurpose centre for digital photography promoting photography culture through exhibitions, workshops, and lectures. In 2014 he was a jury member of the World Press Photo Contest. In 2016 Francesco has been awarded 2nd prize in the Contemporary Issues category of World Press Photo for his series In the Same Boat. In 2018 he was awarded the SIAE Prize for Creative Talent at the Venice Film Festival for his movie 'As if we were tuna', selected for 'Giornate degli autori', the autonomous review inside the Festival' Francesco lives in Rome, Italy. About Hybris Hybris, the last great work by Francesco, is a project that aims to tell, through a complex and articulate photographic language, how much man has exceeded the limits concerning the four elements of nature. Everyday Water, Fire, Earth and Air, are attacked and depleted of their organic and inorganic richness and diversity, of their vital energy so essential even for human life. At the time of writing this text, the chapter Hybris Water is in its final stage. The section of Hybrs Water wants to be a testimony of what is fast disappearing into the sea. The millennial balance that regulated the relationship between the need for human livelihood and the ability of the sea to bestow it, is suffering a crisis. Thanks to advanced technology and hunger for profit, contemporary man has forgotten the limit inherent to nature. Ignoring the cycles of reproduction and destroying the environment where biological diversity should always abound, the great fishing industry is drastically eliminating life in the sea. Those who still practice sustainable fishing today should be considered as the last witnesses of a possible symbiotic relationship with the sea and its life. The last witnesses with a knowledge that, once forgotten, can no longer be passed down to future generations. The fishermen live together with the fish from which their life depends, portrayed with the same dignity of the fishermen who have captured them, they are exposed among them, at the same height of their eyes, of their faces. The fishing scenes are taken with a careful look to make justice of that old relationship of respect towards the sea shown by those who practice a traditional way of fishing year after year, a sustainable fishing indeed. Francesco tries to give voice to different points of view. That of men, but also that of the nature that surrounds us and on which we depend.
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Marijn Fidder is a Dutch documentary photographer whose work powerfully engages with current affairs and contemporary social issues. Driven by a deep sense of social justice, she uses photography to speak on behalf of the voiceless and to advocate for the rights of those who are most vulnerable. Her images have been widely published in major international outlets including National Geographic, CNN Style, NRC Handelsblad, Volkskrant, GUP New Talent, and ZEIT Magazin. Her long-term commitment to disability rights—particularly through years of work in Uganda—culminated in her acclaimed project Inclusive Nation, which earned her the title of Photographer of the Year 2025 at the All About Photo Awards. She is also the recipient of multiple prestigious honors, including awards from World Press Photo and the Global Peace Photo Award. We asked her a few questions about her life and work.
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Call for Entries
All About Photo Awards 2026
$5,000 Cash Prizes! Juror: Steve McCurry