Founded 1984, Centre de la photographie Genève [Geneva Photography Centre, abbreviated CPG] is the main institution dedicated to photography in Geneva, Switzerland. Its core activities are the production of temporary exhibitions with a focus on the contemporary period and particular attention paid to emerging artists, as well as the publication of books on contemporary photography, and art education programmes for professional photographers and artists, and for school audiences. As an art centre dedicated to photography and lens-based art, CPG is committed to encourage visual and digital literacy in its young and adult general audience, and to support professional photographers and artists in the development of their career, with a broad scope of distinct but coherent activities. Danaé Panchaud, a Swiss curator, museologist and lecturer specialising in photography, has been its director since January 2022.
CPG is one of the three institutions in Geneva’s Bâtiment d’art contemporain [Contemporary Art Building], alongside the MAMCO and the Centre d’Art Contemporain Genève, located in the Quartier des Bains, Geneva’s contemporary art district. CPG produces a vast majority of its exhibitions, alongside selected coproductions and touring of existing shows. Producing new bodies of work and supporting artists and photographers in the development of their specific vision for their exhibition at CPG are key engagements of the organisation, which in turn allow it to present to its audiences artworks exhibited for the first time in Geneva. CPG pays particular attention to artists and photographers whose work has received limited institutional attention and visibility so far, in Switzerland and abroad. It regularly organises the first solo exhibition, or first significant monographic presentation in an institutional context, of Swiss and international artists of different generations. Swiss and international artists each represent one half of its exhibition programme, with artists born between the 1960s and the 1990s forming the majority of the represented generations. CPG pays special attention to the diversity and representativeness of the points of view it gives visibility to through its exhibitions. CPG launched two education programmes in fall 2022, and intends to develop several further formats in the field of art education and visual literacy in the coming years. The first programme is a series of interdisciplinary visits for schools for ages 8 and up. It aims to encourage visual literacy as a key to successfully navigating contemporary society, understanding the media and cultural productions at large, as well as expressing oneself. The second programme is designed to support professional photographers and artists in the development of ongoing projects, through different formats which include workshops, specialised talks and conferences, critical feedback sessions and, as of spring 2023, a mentorship programme. Some formats are strictly in person while others can take place entirely online and be accessible to photographers anywhere in the world.
