
Call for Entries newsletter
Stories: Narrative Photography
A curated international photography exhibition
August 23 – September 16, 2025
While photography is popularly associated with capturing the moment, it has always been a sensitive medium of storytelling as well. Looking at a photograph may allow for an understanding of much about the past that has led up to the moment frozen in time; it may also enable the viewer to imagine the possible future unfolding of events that may evolve from the still record of the here and now. Photographers portraying people, objects, and places can tell us inspiring stories, provided we take the time to study and interpret the images. A narrative told in a single photograph is an exciting challenge for both photographer and viewer alike. We invite you to engage with these works with the care and curiosity they deserve.
Encouraged by the success of our previous Stories exhibitions, this year PH21 Gallery invites photographers once again to submit their work for our group exhibition themed Stories: Narrative Photography. We are looking for submissions from all photographers who believe that their work tells a story and would like to share it with a wider international audience through the exposure offered by PH21 Gallery. The theme is broadly construed; it may be expressed visually on personal or social levels, literally or in abstract, symbolic ways. Stories can be told about persons, communities, objects, and places as well. Indeed, we are interested in all possible creative photographic
One curator’s choice and up to three honourable mentions will be announced. The juror’s choice receives three free entries for any upcoming themed group exhibition calls at PH21 Gallery. (Each free entry includes up to 15 images.)
Curators: Zsolt Bátori and Borbála Jász
Zsolt Bátori is a curator, photographer, photography theorist, philosopher of art, and educator. He is the founder director and curator of PH21 Gallery, providing group and solo exhibitions to photographers internationally for over a decade in PH21 Gallery, Budapest and in cooperation with galleries in Barcelona, Jersey City, and Rome. Zsolt has nurtured the careers of many photographers who received further exhibition and career opportunities after exhibiting at PH21 Gallery. After obtaining his PhD in Philosophy from Rutgers University he has taught and conducted research at universities in Hungary, the USA, Argentina, and Spain, and his own photographic work has been exhibited internationally. Currently, Zsolt serves as a member of the executive committee of the International Association for Aesthetics and the Association of Hungarian Photographers. He also served as a juror for Photolucida Critical Mass for the years 2023 and 2024. For Zsolt's website, please click here.
Borbála Jász is a curator, art historian, philosopher of art, and educator. She has served as the vice-director and curator of PH21 Gallery for many years, providing international exhibition and career opportunities for photographers worldwide. Borbála earned her PhD in Philosophy and Art History from Eötvös Loránd University. As an art historian, Borbála is especially perceptive to the cultural and historical context, significance, and interconnectedness of photographic images. She also has first-hand experience with the artistic, legal, and practical aspects of collections, having worked extensively with collectors.
Submission deadlines
-
Early bird deadline: June 16, 2025
-
Final deadline: June 23, 2025
Notification: All entrants will be notified 10-15 days after the final deadline.
Exhibition dates: August 23 – September 16, 2025
There are two submission options:
A) Standard submission:
Until the early bird deadline:
You may submit 3, 5, 7, 10, or 15 images; these may be all individual works, or they may also include a series of maximum 5 photographs. The entry fee is €25.00 for the first 3 images, €30.00 for 5 images, €35.00 for 7 images, €40.00 for 10 images, and €45.00 for 15 images.
After the early bird deadline:
The entry fee after the early bird deadline is €30.00 for the first 3 images, €35.00 for 5 images, €40.00 for 7 images, €45.00 for 10 images, and €50.00 for 15 images.
B) Special fee:
Until the early bird deadline:
There is a special rate for maximum 5 images for students and unwaged persons as well as for applicants from low-income economies.
The special fee is €15.00.
Please do not ask us about your eligibility or send us any proof because we trust your judgement. The special rate is simply for people who – for the reasons indicated above – would not be able to afford the standard fee.
After the early bird deadline:
The special fee after the early bird deadline is €20.00.
Submission rules and guidelines:
-
Please add ph21.gallery@ph21gallery.com and reg@ph21gallery.com to your whitelist, so that our letters are not treated as spam by your e-mail client.
-
The entry fee is not refundable.
-
This call for entries is competitive; entrants are not guaranteed inclusion in the exhibition by submitting an entry. Depending on the number and the quality of the entries received, the work of an entrant may or may not be curated into the show.
-
The selection of the curators is final.
-
Please send in the entry fee first (see the payment option at the bottom of the page), and then submit your images by e-mail to