The artists nominated by
Each year, FOMU supports 10 artists and photographers that have a Belgian connection. Offering fresh perspectives on the possibilities of photography, tiff showcases the diverse and dynamic landscape of Belgian photography. The concept is flexible and responds to the needs of emerging artists. In addition to the magazine and group exhibition the artists are given several opportunities to present their work to an international professional audience.
FOMU invites three external jurors to help select the artists. This year’s jury consisted of Youqine Léfevre (artist and .tiff 2021 participant), Magali Elali (founding artistic director of The Constant Now) and Cale Garrido (curator of the Triennial of Photography Hamburg).
The jury made the selection based on the Fomu criteria:
1. Contemporary relevance
Everything we do is topical and relevant to modern society. We deliberately choose historical and contemporary subjects and projects that are interesting and relatable to a modern audience. We encourage reflection on societal issues and contribute to the prevailing social discourse.
2. Multivocality
We opt for subjects and projects that offer a multifaceted perspective on photographic imagery and the world. We also actively seek out and hold space for different views and perspectives and encourage the representation and involvement of creators from underrepresented communities and backgrounds.
3. Critical reflection on the medium and its evolution
Photography and reality have a multifaceted relationship. We are interested in the mechanisms of photography and deliberately work with photographers who critically engage with the medium or its history and are aware of artistic-conceptual positions and visual language.
4. Ethical position
Due to its complex relationship with reality, photography inevitably raises ethical questions. We are keenly aware of the context in which images emerge and exist. As a result, we always consider the intention and impact of images. We approach all images with the necessary caution and contextualise them within their historical context.
Fomu invited fellow Futures members to be part of the jury that would pick four artists from ten to join the Futures program. The jury consisted of Caroline von Courten & Simon Lovermann of Der Greif and Katalin Kopin & Emese Mucsi of Robert Capa Contemporary Photography Center.
Aliki Christoforou (1992) is a greek and belgian multidisciplinary artist based in Brussels. Her practice unfolds across lens-based media, installation and writing, and moves along the porous borders between reality and fiction, history and myth. She is drawn to stories that tell other stories — narratives that repopulate our imaginaries and question our reality.
Guided by a desire to uncover submerged narratives, her work explores individual and collective memory, weaving connections between past, present, and possible futures. It situates itself within an expanded ecological framework that dissolves boundaries between the human and the non-human, revealing social and environmental realities as intricate, interdependent constellations.
Initially trained in architecture and scenography, Aliki later obtained a MA in photography from ENSAV La Cambre (2022) as well as a MA in «Art Practice – Critical Tools» from ERG (2025) in Brussels. Her work has since been exhibited accros Europe.
Her research revolves around ecology, new technologies and the construction of post-capitalocene imaginaries. She was an artist-in-residence at Villa Pérochon under the mentorship of Joan Fontcuberta. In 2025, she began a residency in regenerative design at Fondation Martell. Her work has been presented internationally in numerous festivals, galleries, and museums like Paris Photo, Rencontres d’Arles and Photo Élysée.
In 2024, she was invited by Sigma to present a large-scale exhibition combining multiple projects in Aranya and Shanghai. In 2027, she will present a solo exhibition at the Braunschweig Museum für Photographie. Supported by Fondation des Artistes for her project Tigre jaune sur fond bleu (2025), Azzopardi has received several awards and grants, including the CNAP support for contemporary documentary photography (2025).
Her first book, Non Technological Devices, will be published by Witty Books in 2026.
Natalie Malisse (b. 1998) is a Belgian photographer based in Brussels. She graduated from ESA “Le 75” (BE) and holds a master’s degree from KASK, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent (BE).
Through image and text, her practice explores the vulnerabilities and layers that shape our identities, navigating traumatic memory, mental health, disability, and gender inequalities.
Malisse is the recipient of the residency awarded by the Friends of the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Saint-Étienne Métropole (MAMC+). Her work has been exhibited in Belgium and France, including at the Photography Museum in Charleroi, Festival OFF Arles, Circulation(s) Festival, the Centre Photographique Hôtel Fontfreyde, and Prix Médiatine. Her pictures will be presented in 2026 at FOMU (BE), Cultuurcentrum Hasselt (BE), and the Biennale de la Photographie de Mulhouse (FR).
"La grande maison", published by les éditions du Caïd, is her first book.
My practice focuses on landscape and questions revolving around its use, exploitation and representation. Through my projects, I attempt to reflect on our relationship with what we call nature and to offer a different understanding of it.
In Brussels, in 2020, I co-founded the collective La Nombreuse, composed of eight photographers and an art historian. We opened a multifaceted space, part studio, part exhibition space, conference venue, workshop space, etc.
The monograph Charbon blanc was published in October 2021 by Le Bec en l'air. Since 2017, my work has been exhibited at various festivals and galleries in France and Belgium in particular.
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