
The
Artist
Varvara Uhlik
Lives and Works in
London, UK
Varvara Uhlik (b.1997, Ukraine) is a London-based visual artist who explores themes of Slavic culture and identity, with a focus on the post-Soviet era’s impact on her generation.
Working across photography, installation, and video, Varvara often reworks archival materials, bringing them into dialogue with contemporary narratives and newly produced work. Through this process, she examines the tension between past and present, reality and its digital afterlife, foregrounding the impermanence of our surroundings and the fragility of memory.
In 2024, the British Journal of Photography recognised Varvara as a Ones to Watch artist. Her work has been exhibited internationally, including at The Sunday Painter, London; Photo Élysée Museum, Switzerland; European Photography Month, Tokyo; MIA Milan Photo Fair, Italy; Encontros da Imagem, Portugal; and Liquida Photofestival, Italy. Her work has appeared in publications such as The Guardian, Beaux Arts Magazine, Photoworks, Riga Photography Biennial 2025, Der Greif, and LensCulture, among others.
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Varvara Uhlik
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Each year every member of the FUTURES European Photography Platform nominates a set of artists and projects to become part of the FUTURES network.
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Bertrand Cavalier unfolds his artistic thinking across photography, sculpture, drawing, and video, each medium enriching the others. His work shifts from a politics of the gaze to a logic of sensation, where art becomes a bodily experience rather than mere representation. In this way, his work is part of a contemporaneity that echoes the ideas of Gilles Deleuze, offering a reflection on our ability to communicate and share ideas beyond words, through sensations that resonate with our bodies and our spaces. — Olivier Grasser
Bertrand Cavalier has published with Fw:Books (NL, 2020) and Spector Books (DE, 2024). He is the laureate of the Prix Ville de Bruxelles – Centrale for Contemporary Art (BE, 2025) and has exhibited at FOMU Antwerp (BE), Photoforum Pasquart Biel (CH), BIP – Biennale de l’Image Possible, Liège (BE), and FRAC Orléans (FR). He received the Sébastien van der Straten Fund Award (2019) and was a resident at Artwell Amsterdam (NL, 2021) and Cité internationale des arts, Paris (FR, 2023). His work has been published in Artpress, Mouvement (both FR), Camera Austria (AT) and l’art même (BE).



My name is Claude. As an interdisciplinary artist, I mainly use the media of photography and sound. I am based in Lichtensteig in Toggenburg, Switzerland. I grew up in the 90‘s in a small village on the Swiss side of Lake Constance and was socialised in the environment of the Catholic Church. Today, after studying analogue photography at Ostkreuzschule in Berlin and living in various house and farm projects, I no longer feel that I belong there.
However, the themes in my artistic practice today are still characterised by a tightly structured childhood, youth and apprenticeship: in my work, I have been exploring the concepts of collectivity and intimacy for several years. I am always looking for liberating and solidary acts in performative moments and arts production. My image- and sound-based practice reveals my great affinity for technology, the exploration of boundaries and needs in dialogue and the creation of trusting connections and learning spaces in my collaborations.
As a child of the working class, I am concerned with my own role as an artist in society and what (political) room for manoeuvre this opens up for me. The problem of self-exploitation, especially - but not only - with a body read as female, is a recurring theme in my artistic practice.
Since 2019, the Salon Vert has been a network of artists, a laboratory for sound research and a place for interdisciplinary dialogue. The Salon Vert has found a new home in my studio in Lichtensteig in 2023. I am also co-founder of the audiovisual Glitch Festival in St.Gallen and music editor at the community radio station Stadtfilter in Winterthur.
However, the themes in my artistic practice today are still characterised by a tightly structured childhood, youth and apprenticeship: in my work, I have been exploring the concepts of collectivity and intimacy for several years. I am always looking for liberating and solidary acts in performative moments and arts production. My image- and sound-based practice reveals my great affinity for technology, the exploration of boundaries and needs in dialogue and the creation of trusting connections and learning spaces in my collaborations.
As a child of the working class, I am concerned with my own role as an artist in society and what (political) room for manoeuvre this opens up for me. The problem of self-exploitation, especially - but not only - with a body read as female, is a recurring theme in my artistic practice.
Since 2019, the Salon Vert has been a network of artists, a laboratory for sound research and a place for interdisciplinary dialogue. The Salon Vert has found a new home in my studio in Lichtensteig in 2023. I am also co-founder of the audiovisual Glitch Festival in St.Gallen and music editor at the community radio station Stadtfilter in Winterthur.



Julius Thissen (1993, the Netherlands) lives and works in Arnhem, NL. Their work investigates themes of community and representation, masculinity, sports, and competition. Originating from their background as a performance artist, Thissen's photographic practice aims to create narratives that explore the fine line between performing and failing. These themes are closely tied to contemporary performance-driven culture and the influence of societal expectations on behavior. Their work is deeply rooted in personal experiences as a genderqueer and transmasculine individual. Thissen strongly opposes the restrictive and often binary narratives imposed on transgender and queer individuals.
Thissen has been nominated for the Hendrik Valk Prize, Arnhemse Nieuwe, and the Warsteiner Blooom Awards. In 2023, they received the Artist Basis Fund and, more recently, a Mondriaan Fund Artist Project Grant for their new project Bones of Graphene, Skin of Kevlar.



I was born in Cali, Colombia, and moved to Switzerland at the age of four. My early interest in photography emerged through BMX culture, shaped by a raw, spontaneous, and DIY mindset. This curiosity led me to study photography at ECAL, in Lausanne where I got a Bachelor in Photography in 2020.
Since then, I have worked across different fields of photography, balancing applied practice with the development of a personal artistic body of work. In 2024, following a residency as part of the Verzasca Foto Festival, I initiated the project Torbola 31, which marked a turning point in my artistic practice. The project combines the DIY, instinctive heritage of my beginnings with a more structured and conceptual approach. It was awarded the Swiss Design Awards in 2025.
Alongside my artistic work, I founded Siestaaa Papers, my own publishing house dedicated to collaborations with other artists and designers.



Elena Corbu is a visual artist in love with simplicity. Choosing to be a photographer in the creative industry opened the door to many unique experiences. Elena chooses her projects out of a genuine connection with the people she works with. The sensorial approach she attributes to each photographic project keeps her creativity alive, and the challenges that come with it take her further to the heights of imagination. The abstract and the concrete are separated by such a fine line that viewers are invited into her inner world when they come into contact with her works. Her images have been published in a range of magazines, whilst her work has featured in various group and solo exhibitions, most recently in Bucharest, Cluj, London & Paris.
Through her photography, she aims to create a space for dialogue that encourages viewers to reflect on their own narratives and the shared human experience.



Parisa Aminolahi (Tehran, Iran), based in the Netherlands, is a freelance filmmaker and photographer. Her series are mostly long-term projects. And her work explores themes such as displacement, exile, homeland, family, and childhood memories, using old family photographs, self-portraits, and her own family members as subjects. Her mediums include photography, documentary filmmaking, animation, painting, and mixed media.She studied theatre stage design (BA) and animation (MA) at University of Art in Tehran and documentary filmmaking (MA) at Royal Holloway, University of London. She is a recipient of The Firecracker Photographic Grant, The Netherlands Film Fund, GUP New Dutch Photography Talent of the Year and One World Media Student Film Bursary. Her dummy book, Tehran Diary, was shortlisted for the MACK First Book Award, BUP Book Award, and PHmuseum Women Photographers Grant. She has held screenings and exhibitions locally and internationally and is represented by Ag Galerie.



Rafael Roncato (Brazil, 1989) is an interdisciplinary visual artist, editor, and educator working between Brazil and the Netherlands. His practice examines colonial memory, media myths, and the politics of representation, focusing on how images construct belief systems and shape collective perception. Grounded in documentary photography and expanded through archival research, video, and editorial strategies, Roncato develops semi-fictional, non-linear narratives that interrogate contemporary media landscapes and historical power structures.
Inspired by comics, cinema, and Brazilian (post)modernism, his work moves fluidly across formats, from artist books to exhibitions and multimedia projects. He holds a Master’s in Photography and Society from the Royal Academy of Art, The Hague, where he teaches artist bookmaking and visual storytelling and mentors emerging practitioners.
His work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Netherlands Fotomuseum, Noorderlicht International Photo Festival, PhMuseum Days, Les Rencontres de la Photographie d’Arles, Encontros da Imagem, and Schwules Museum Berlin. His photobook Tropical Trauma Misery Tour received the 1st Prize at the Kassel Dummy Award ’23 (GER), the Imaginária Festival Dummy Awards ’23 (BR), and a Special Mention at the Hong Kong Photobook Festival ’23.
Portrait of Rafael Roncato by Gita Cooper van Ingen
Inspired by comics, cinema, and Brazilian (post)modernism, his work moves fluidly across formats, from artist books to exhibitions and multimedia projects. He holds a Master’s in Photography and Society from the Royal Academy of Art, The Hague, where he teaches artist bookmaking and visual storytelling and mentors emerging practitioners.
His work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Netherlands Fotomuseum, Noorderlicht International Photo Festival, PhMuseum Days, Les Rencontres de la Photographie d’Arles, Encontros da Imagem, and Schwules Museum Berlin. His photobook Tropical Trauma Misery Tour received the 1st Prize at the Kassel Dummy Award ’23 (GER), the Imaginária Festival Dummy Awards ’23 (BR), and a Special Mention at the Hong Kong Photobook Festival ’23.
Portrait of Rafael Roncato by Gita Cooper van Ingen



Paula Artés (1996) is an artist committed to unveiling and questioning hidden spaces
of power—and, by extension, control. Through rigorous prior research, she brings
these spaces to light.
Her work has been exhibited at Museu Habitat, curated by Manuel J. Borja-Villel;
Santa Mònica in Barcelona; Lo Pati in Amposta; the Museu Morera; and the Festival
de la Imagen in Colombia. She won the ArtNou Award for Best Exhibition at àngels
barcelona gallery.
Her work is part of the Mapfre Foundation collection and the Contemporary Art
Collection of the Generalitat de Catalunya. She has been selected for PhotoEspaña
Descubrimientos, Sala d’Art Jove, VEGAP, OSIC, and Unseen Amsterdam. She has
also been nominated for the Gabriele Basilico Prize, the C/O Berlin Talent Award, the
MAST Foundation Prize, and the Pla(t)form Prize at FotoMuseum. Additionally, she
has participated in residencies at HISK in Belgium and Baladre at Lo Pati.



João Bragança Gil (Lisbon, 1989) is an artist, based in Lisbon, Portugal. Attended the Painting course at the Faculty of Fine Arts of Lisbon between 2008 and 2010; Graduated in Industrial Design in 2013 from Escola Superior de Artes e Design. In 2014, Bragança Gil moved to London, graduating in MA Industrial Design at Central Saint Martins UAL in 2016. In 2019 Bragança Gil, moved to Lisbon, and started practicing fine arts full-time. Currently he’s pursuing a Media Arts PhD at Faculty of Fine Arts of Lisbon.Recent exhibitions include “Drop me in the river, Dip me in the water!” (2021) at Galeria Pedro Cera; “The sun, the oldest, the sheep, as the origin (on and on) and the klecks klecks” (2021), by Sismógrafo at Casa das Artes, Porto; “CODA” (2022) at Buraco, Lisbon, “Uncertain Strata” at EGEU; “Estudo do Meio”, Carpintarias de S. Lázaro; “Midnight Sun”, Mono. Recidency at Arquipélago — Centro de Artes Contemporâneas, São Miguel, with FetArt (France) and CiCLO (Portugal). In 2023, Bragança Gil presented “Artificial Paradises” (2023) a solo exhibition at the National Museum of Science and Natural History, resulting from more than two years of research.In 2024, participated in the group exhibition “Entre Margens” curated by João Pinharanda and the group show “Passages” at Galeria Encounter; and the solo exhibition “Trouble in Paradise” at (Projectspace) at the Encounter and Jahn und Jahn Gallery, in Lisbon.



Lucija Rosc (b. 1995) is a visual artist based in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Rosc graduated in photography from the Faculty of Applied Sciences VIST in Ljubljana in 2018 and earned her master’s degree in Visual Communication Design, with a focus on photography, with special honors from the Faculty of Fine Arts and Design (ALUO) in 2022. Rosc received the UL ALUO Prešeren Award and was a nominee for the 2024 OHO Award, Slovenia's premier national recognition for young visual artists. Rosc's art practice combines an investigative approach with play, drawing inspiration from her childhood memories, family archives, and the environment in which she grew up. She has held numerous solo exhibitions, with her work featured in exhibitions across Europe and the USA. Additionally, Rosc's work has been showcased at prestigious contemporary photography fairs, including Unseen Amsterdam, Photo Basel, Viennacontemporary art fair and the Art Salon Zürich, among others.
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Salvatore Vitale (b. 1986, Palermo, Italy) is a Swiss-based artist, director, and professor whose work explores the complexity of contemporary societies. Using expanded and speculative storytelling through mixed media techniques, he focuses on the politics of systems that regulate modernity and the impact of technological transformations.
Vitale is the Artistic Director of EXPOSED Torino Foto Festival and FUTURES Photography, both international platforms dedicated to contemporary photography. He also serves as a Professor at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, where he leads the Transmedia Storytelling Programme. Previously, he was the co-founder and editor-in-chief of YET magazine, an international photography publication.
Vitale’s work has received international awards. It is featured in several public and private collections and has been widely exhibited in museums and at festivals worldwide.

Ángel Luis González Fernández is a designer, artist, and curator supporting engaging visual arts practices, winner of Business to Arts David Manley Emerging Entrepreneur Awards 2011.
His work manifests through PhotoIreland, which he founded in 2010 to stimulate a critical dialogue on Photography. He devises curatorial projects placing conversations in the public realm around visual culture, critical thinking. These include events (PhotoIreland Festival, Halftone Print Fair, arts residency How to Flatten a Mountain, and New Irish Works), a cultural hub (The Library Project: Ireland’s Art bookshop, host to a unique resource library of photobooks and a productive arts programme), publishing projects that distribute inexpensive access to local practices, research projects (Critical Academy: examining contemporary art practices). He works collaboratively with a growing network of organisations, noticeably through ambitious Creative Europe partnerships.
During the Summer 2020 lockdown he launched the critical publication OVER Journal, now distributed globally. He received the Arts Council of Ireland’s Visual Arts Bursary to deepen research on the broad historical and specific artistic context of Photography in Ireland, to curate an ambitious survey exhibition in PhotoIreland Festival 2022 and to publish a series of publications on the matter. He regularly contributes to publications such as the forthcoming The Routledge Companion to Global Photographies, edited by Lucy Soutter, Duncan Wooldridge.
See some of his Graphic and Web Design work in the 100 Design Archive.

Iveta Gabaliņa (1979) is a curator, artist and educator. She has studied photography at the studio of Andrejs Grants, at Bournemouth Art Institute, and in the MA programme at Alto University in Helsinki. Her work has been exhibited in Latvia and internationally, including at C/O (Berlin, Germany), GESTE (Paris), and Williams Tower Gallery (Houston, USA). Gabaliņa has participated in photography festivals in Singapore, Hanover, and elsewhere. Her work is included in the collections of the Victoria & Albert Museum, Geste Paris, and the Deutsche Börse Art Collection.
Since 2008 she has been part of ISSP team, responsible for numerous educational and curatorial projects. In 2018 she founded ISSP Gallery - an exhibition space dedicated to contemporary photography.

I’ve always loved photography, even if it sounds like a cliche. The first photos I took, I did without knowing how to do that, without paying any attention to framing, subject or composition. After a while, I began to understand what is happening in the space between me as a photographer and the subject I was photographing. And many years later, I also understood why I love to photograph. To communicate. A message, a concept, an emotion.
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