Since its inception, the V&A Parasol Foundation Prize for Women in Photography has been at the forefront of elevating female photographers on a global stage. Launched in 2022 as part of the V&A’s Parasol Foundation Women in Photography Project, the prize has swiftly become a prestigious platform for fostering innovation and expanding the visibility of women in the field. The initiative acknowledges not only the artistic excellence of contemporary female photographers but also their ability to push the boundaries of visual storytelling.
The prize has already left an indelible mark on the industry, with past winners and participants making waves internationally. Figures such as Silvia Rosi, whose work explores identity and migration through staged portraiture, and Siân Davey, known for her intimate documentary approach, have been recognised through the initiative. By providing funding, exhibition opportunities, and mentorship, the prize creates pathways for artists to expand their practices and reach new audiences.
The 2025 edition marks the third iteration of this significant prize, continuing its mission of identifying and supporting emerging and established female photographers. This year’s winners will each receive a bursary of £2,000 and will showcase their work at the Copeland Gallery, London, as part of the Peckham 24 festival, a dynamic celebration of contemporary photography running from 16-25 May 2025.
The 2025 competition drew submissions from an array of global voices, each responding to the theme of “Unity.” Photographers from Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia explored the ways in which individuals and communities come together – whether through healing, reconciliation or shared cultural narratives. The selected works demonstrate photography’s evolving role as a medium that goes beyond documentation, engaging deeply with social and political discourse.
The selection committee, comprising key figures from the photography world, was co-chaired by Fiona Rogers, the V&A’s inaugural Parasol Foundation Curator of Women in Photography, and Vivienne Gamble, co-founder of Peckham 24. They were joined by Dr Charmaine Toh, Senior Curator of International Art (Photography) at Tate, Thyago Nogueira, Head of the Contemporary Photography Department at Instituto Moreira Salles in Brazil, and the esteemed British artist Gillian Wearing.
“We are delighted to announce such a diverse and talented group of global artists as the winners of the third edition of the V&A Parasol Foundation Prize for Women in Photography,” the committee stated. “Each artist represents a bold interpretation of contemporary photographic practice and conceptual responses to the Prize theme, with a strong focus on community building. Their striking artistic interventions demonstrate photography’s ability to expand beyond the two-dimensional and convey empathy and sensitivity.”
This year’s winners reflect a breadth of contemporary practice, from performance-based photography to historical re-imaginings through collage. Each artist employs unique methodologies to challenge dominant narratives and craft new modes of representation.
Morgan Levy (USA) Morgan Levy’s ongoing series Spark of a Nail reimagines the depiction of labour in America, focusing on women and non-binary individuals in the building trades. Her staged yet documentary-inflected images reference 20th-century canonical depictions of work while challenging their traditionally masculine focus. By foregrounding care, agency, and self-representation, Levy’s work queers the visual language of industry, creating a powerful counter-narrative of resilience and solidarity.
Spandita Malik (India) In Jāḍī-Meshes of Resistance, Malik collaborates with rural Indian women to produce photographic portraits printed on traditional textiles. The subjects then embroider over the images, choosing how they wish to be seen. Evoking Gandhi’s khadi movement and resistance against colonialism, the works become living testimonies of agency and defiance, stitched together one thread at a time. Malik’s work highlights the intersection of photography, craft, and activism, forging new pathways for collective storytelling.
Tshepiso Moropa (South Africa) Johannesburg-based artist Tshepiso Moropa expands the boundaries of collage with Ditoro (Dreams in SeTswana). Her large-scale installations merge archival African imagery with personal photographs, layering fragments of history to reconstruct alternative narratives of identity and diaspora. The result is a dreamlike synthesis of past, present, and future, where ancestral memory and contemporary experience coalesce in striking visual form.
The V&A Parasol Foundation Prize is more than an accolade – it is a commitment to fostering the next generation of female photographic talent. The initiative not only provides critical support for emerging practitioners, but also reaffirms the importance of equitable representation in the arts. By championing photographers who interrogate history, identity, and social structures, the prize contributes to an evolving photographic landscape that is more inclusive.
The 2025 V&A Parasol Foundation Prize for Women in Photography winners will exhibit their work in a group show at the Copeland Gallery, London from 16-25 May: vam.ac.uk
Words: Anna Müller
Image Credits:
1 & 3. ‘Jess Shimmering’ by Morgan Levy, 2022. Image courtesy of the artist.
2. Untitled, from the ongoing series ‘Beirut, Recurring Dream’ by Tanya Traboulsi, 2021 – ongoing. Image courtesy of the artist-3.
4. ‘Arifa Bano’ by Spandita Malik, 2023. Photographic transfer print on khadi, zardozi and gota-patti embroidery, beadwork, mirror work. Image courtesy of the artist.
5. ‘Stranger Fruit’ by Tshepiso Moropa, 2025. Collage on Fabriano Paper. Image courtesy of the artist.
