T

he festival begins at La Misericòrdia, which also houses the Arxiu del So i de la Imatge (ASIM), Mallorca’s central photographic archive. The opening event, held on April 25th, marks the starting point of PHOF with the presentation of the programme and the Mallorca Photography Awards, accompanied by live music and a public reception. From there, the exhibition programme, grouped under the PHOTOPROJECT section, unfolds across the island. At La Misericòrdia, two exhibitions will feature the works of the Mallorca Photography Award winners, while the Fundació Toni Catany hosts Joan Fontcuberta’s La Via Làctia. Retratar arbres. At Casal Solleric, Wunderkammer continues this exploration of the image, and the Fundació Miró presents the exhibition of Jean Marie del Moral titled: Miró, Mont-roig – Picasso, Horta. CaixaForum Palma contributes with Colors del Món, a National Geographic exhibition, among other projects that extend across the island.

Alongside exhibitions, the festival develops a public and discursive programme. At Es Baluard, a single conference is scheduled within the programme, while the main focus is the photobook section. Conceived as a three-day gathering curated by the SamaKineta collective and directed by Xisco Bonnín, this programme approaches the book as a place for sharing, editing and discussing photographic practice, both as an artistic format and as a way of building a community around the medium. Other formats extend the presence of the festival across different contexts. PHOTO STREET brings photography into the public realm, inviting local press photographers to exhibit their work on billboards across Palma. At Teatre Sa Societat in Calvià, PHOTOFILM presents a programme of projections, while workshops and guided activities developed with Fundación Juan March, Casa Planas and ADEMA open the festival to wider audiences.

PHOF takes place within a context in which Mallorca has developed a dense network of institutions and initiatives dedicated to photography. The Fundació Toni Catany, the Arxiu del So i de la Imatge, and exhibition programmes at spaces such as Casal Solleric and CaixaForum have contributed to a cultural infrastructure that connects archival work, exhibition-making and contemporary practice. Within this landscape, PHOF brings these different elements into relation, creating a shared framework that unfolds over time. The festival moves across exhibition spaces, publications and public environments, engaging different audiences while situating photography within a broader field of contemporary visual culture.

For more information: @phof_mallorcaphotofest