27 September–26 October 2025
Dummy Award ’25
International
Centre for
the Image
Dummy Award ’25
The Dummy Award is the international competition for the best unpublished photobook dummies of the year.
The Dummy Award is one of the most important international competitions in support of photographers and photobook publishing. Evolved from the famous Kassel Dummy Award, and organised by the PhotoBookMuseum in Cologne since 2023, the award seeks the best unpublished photobook dummies of the year. On March 8th 2025, an invited jury met to review and evaluate the 395 dummies received from 48 countries. In the end, 50 books were selected to make up the shortlist of the Dummy Award ’25.
The Dummy Award travels the world as an exhibition of the shortlisted books, stopping at key locations such as Barcelona, Milan, Bangkok, and Santiago de Chile, and events and venues including the Rencontres d’Arles (LUMA), Galerie Fotografic in Prague, and the Penumbra Foundation in NYC. PhotoIreland has hosted the exhibition in Dublin every year, acknowledging the importance of this varied and ambitious presentation of artist practice, outstanding design, and a remarkable sample of a global passion for publishing; it is a rare opportunity to see these artists’ maquettes in real life at a special stage of the book-making process. It is a great way to discover diverse art practices as well as design approaches from all over the world.
The International Centre for the Image brings you the opportunity to enjoy these publications from 27th September to 26th October 2025. Don’t forget to vote for your favourite one!
Browse all shortlisted books on the Dummy Award Youtube channel.
Jury Statement
This year’s Dummy Award revealed a fascinating paradox: photobooks have never been more polished, yet their essence remains raw, instinctive, deeply personal. Across hundreds of submissions, we saw a striking trend: photobooks as spaces of catharsis, where authors confront personal struggles, past wounds, and fragile identities. The book format becomes not just a means of storytelling, but a tool for self-exploration, healing, and even reinvention.
Refined outside, raw inside
This year’s selection also demonstrated an impressive breadth of perspectives, reinforcing the truly international nature of the Dummy Award. The diversity of voices was not something we had to seek out—it emerged naturally. From handmade zines to meticulously designed objects, from deeply personal narratives to broader cultural reflections, the photobook continues to transcend borders. The medium is, in many ways, a photographic Esperanto, allowing authors from vastly different realities to share a common space.
One world, many voices
Material choices were striking. Many dummies already felt like finished books, blurring the lines between prototype and publication. Spiral bindings, leporellos, and intricate sewn pamphlets dominated the selection, though we often wished for bolder cover choices—after all, if a dummy embodies the author’s vision of a final book, then… Make it count.
Be brave! Be bold!
A recurring theme in many projects was the use of archives, particularly family archives, as a means of storytelling. The desire to reinterpret, reclaim, or recontextualize personal and collective histories remains a strong force in photobook-making. We also noticed a continued tendency to depict the other—a recurring exploration of identity through external perspectives, raising questions about representation and authorship.
Memory speaks, identity shifts
While AI-generated imagery is becoming an increasingly common tool in visual creation, we were surprised to see very little of it in this year’s submissions. Instead, most projects leaned towards traditional photographic practices. In a time of global unrest, documentary and explicitly political works were less present than one might expect. Instead, many projects turned inward, exploring memory, family archives, and personal geographies. Perhaps this reflects the times—a moment of pause before artists turn their gaze outward once again.
More soul, less code
And yet, amidst all this introspection, one thing brought us unexpected joy: humor. From subtle irony to outright laugh-out-loud moments, a refreshing sense of playfulness ran through many books this year. Perhaps this, too, is a form of catharsis—proof that even in times of reflection, there’s always room for lightness.
Serious work, playful mind
The Dummy Award 2025 Jury
The Dummy Award ’25 Shortlist
Sandra Guldemann Duchatellier, FR
une fable Égyptienne
16,5 x 22 cm, 152pp
open spine, softcover
@sgduchatellier
sandraguldemannduchatellier.com
Youtube video ↗
Amina Falah, DE
Reise des Unsichtbaren
18,5 x 26,5 cm, 144pp
open spine, hardcover with a foldout
@soulofmind
amina-falah.myportfolio.com
Youtube video ↗
Mikael Buck, GB
Sorry About That
11 x 18.5 cm, 156pp
softcover
@mikael_buck
mikaelbuck.com
Youtube video ↗
Eva Rivas Bao, IT/AR
Imane Fadil
26,6 x 32 cm, 48pp
perfect binding, softcover, dust jacket
Antoine Woeffray, CH
I unfold my skin in the morning
21,3 x 26,9 cm, 160pp
perfect binding, softcover
@antoinewoeffray
Youtube video ↗
Roz Doherty, GB
The Golden Age of Hijacking
20 x 25 cm, 130pp
comb binding, softcover & hand-sewn zine
@rozdoherty
rozdoherty.com
Youtube video ↗
Stefaniia Bodnia, UA
Coal Mine, Land Mine, The Body of Mine
27,5 x 20 cm, 104pp
open spine, softcover with a flap, French-fold dust jacket
@stefabodnia
stefaniiabodnia.xyz
Youtube video ↗
Javier Talavera, ES
Not all bald men with beards are Javier Talavera
29,8 x 22,8 cm, 16pp
saddle-stitched, die-cut softcover
@javier.talavera_
javiertalavera.com
Youtube video ↗
Sveta Kaverina, RU
The Garden of Earthly Delights
21 x 29,7 cm, 140pp
Swiss binding, softcover with a flap
@svetakaverina.photography
svetakaverina.com
Youtube video ↗
Fabio Domenicali, IT
Teren Zielony
27,5 x 27,5 cm, 136pp
open spine, flush-cut hardcover
Martin Ruckert, DE
Baryt 2.57
21 x 26 cm, 84pp
Wire-O binding, PVC cover
@martin_ruckert
martinruckert.de
Youtube video ↗
Joshua Deaner, US
An Honest Liar
20 x 25 cm, 106pp
perfect binding, hardcover
@joshuadeaner
joshuadeaner.com
Youtube video ↗
Takuma, Misumi, JP
YoYo no Shiori
14,8 × 21 cm, 60pp
leporello, hardcover
@mismith0227
mismith.me
Youtube video ↗
E. Onur Ceritoğlu & Okay Karadayılar, TR
Çıkmacılar
16,5 x 24 cm, 496pp
perfect binding, softcover
@baskonusbirakdinle
onurceritoglu.com
Youtube video ↗
Dragan Saric, NL
Tomorrow Hotel
14,8 x 21 cm, 202pp
Japanese binding, hardcover in an envelope
@saricdragan
dragansaric.com
Youtube video ↗
Bojan ‘Chibsterr’ Nikolic, GB/BA
Raw Data
14.8 x 21 cm, 110pp
perfect binding, hardcover
@chibsterr
chibsterrphoto.com
Youtube video ↗
Anya Belka, RU
a book about break dance
13 x 17 cm, 212pp
open spine, hardcover
@belkasvao
belkasvao.com
Youtube video ↗
Justin Maxon & Dr. H. “Herukhuti” Sharif Williams, US
Chester: Staring Down the White Gaze
20 x 23,5 cm, 272pp
saddled stitched booklets, loose sheets bound by rubber band
@justinmeadmaxon
justinmaxon.com
Youtube video ↗
Neil Matheson, GB
After Hiroshige
24 x 18,2 cm, 156pp
hardcover, PVC jacket
Anthony Camargo, VE/CO
La cosa cambió de color
11,5 x 15,4 cm, 70pp
die-cut hardcover
@anthonycamargo7
Youtube video ↗
Anton Röntz, DE
Zenit
18 x 24 cm, 48pp
spiral binding, hardcover
@antonroentz
antonroentz.com
Youtube video ↗
Kunstakademie Münster, DE
Sollbruchstelle
23,5 x 29,7 cm, 88pp
perforated pages, perfect binding, perforated softcover
kunstakademie-muenster.de
Youtube video ↗
Claire Cocano, FR
Rue Désiré Chevalier
19 x 26 cm, 192pp
hand-sewn, hardcover, French-fold dust jacket
@claire_cocano
clairecocano.com
Youtube video ↗
Andrea Alessandrini, IT
Dreaming your dreams
21 x 27,5 cm, 128pp
softcover with flaps
@andreaalessandrini_net
andreaalessandrini.net
Youtube video ↗
Uta Genilke, DE
Sacre
17 x 24 cm, 76pp
open spine, softcover
@pik.dame
genilke.com
Youtube video ↗
Fernanda Requena, CL
Pain / Dolor
15 x 21 cm, 112pp
open spine, hardcover
@fernandarqn
fernandarequena.com
Youtube video ↗
Federica Mambrini, IT
L’albergo della lontananza / Far far stay
21 x 29,7 cm, 296pp
perfect binding, softcover
@eimraa
federicamambrini.com
Youtube video ↗
Minoo Hassanzadeh, IR
Zone C
21 x 28 cm, 36pp
open spine, die-cut softcover
@minoo.hassanzadeh
Youtube video ↗
Nora Börding & Anne Speltz, DE/LU
The forgotten stories of the ‘Boat Driver’
25 x 35 cm, 384pp
Swiss binding, softcover
@nora_boerding @anneandthesun
noraboerding.de
anne-speltz.de
Youtube video ↗
Lisa-Maria Gruber, AT
Vermilion Fingertips
17 x 24,5 cm, 88pp
open spine, hardcover, textile jacket
@liemarie__
liemarie.com
Youtube video ↗
Archivo de la Memoria Tran Argentina & Flor Aletta, AR
Belén, María Belén
21 x 24,5 cm, 143pp
spiral binding, hardcover
@archivotrans
archivotrans.ar
Youtube video ↗
Yuan Lin, CN
Duration
18 × 26 cm, 138pp
three sewn signature booklets bound together, libretto binding
Ashutosh Shaktan, IN
Nobody knows how come the hum, hum…
20 x 24 cm, 160pp
hardcover
@naqshfariyadi
ashutoshshaktan.com
Youtube video ↗
Mahtab Ghaedi, IR
41 N
15 x 21 cm, 112pp
hardcover
@ghaedi_mahtab
Youtube video ↗
Penelope Thomaidi, GR
Under Pressure
18 x 24 cm, 192pp
open spine, softcover, dust jacket
@penelopethomaidi
penelopethomaidi.com
Youtube video ↗
Jan Schenk, IT
Nur der Pudding…
13 x 24 cm, 228pp
hardcover
Blood Becomes Water, BG/BE
The Setlist Collection
29,7 x 21 cm, 104pp
perfect binding, softcover
@blood.becomes.water
bloodbecomeswater.com
Youtube video ↗
Clara Simas, BR
Meu pai morreu três vezes /
My father died three times
17 x 24 cm, 200pp
perfect binding, softcover
David Mozzetta, IT
Housing
14 x 20 cm, 96pp
perfect binding, softcover, dust jacket
@davidmozzetta
davidmozzetta.com
Youtube video ↗
Michele I Arazi, IT/US
Land of
27 x 19 cm, 96pp
flush-cut hardcover
@michelearazi
michelearazi.com
Youtube video ↗
Olga Bushkova, CH
A Photo at 12
16 x 20 cm, 172pp
open spine, softcover
@misha_olya_bushkovs
olgabushkova.com
Youtube video ↗
Carla Corminboeuf, CH/PE
Eclats
21 x 29 cm, 66pp
Japanese-fold, Swiss binding, dust jacket
Laura Fiorio, IT
Reinventario
17 x 23 cm, 96 pp + 12pp
open spine, softcover, booklet
@laurafioriop
laurafiorio.com
Youtube video ↗
Philip Welding, GB
A Colossal Waste of Time
15,2 x 22,8 cm, 104pp
open spine, softcover
@philipwelding
philipwelding.co.uk
Youtube video ↗
Marie-Luise Kolb, DE
Weißes Gold
15,5 x 23 cm, 132pp
hardcover, belly band
@marieluise.kolb
marieluisekolb.de
Youtube video ↗
Zaki Habibi, ID
Abandoned and Beyond
19 x 24 cm, 60pp
hand-sewn, softcover, dust jacket
Dave Hebb, US
The Poverty of Excess
35 x 50 cm, 12pp
newspaper
@therealdavehebb
davehebb.com
Youtube video ↗
Monon Muntaka, BD
Texture & Mixture
17,2 x 22,9 cm , 92pp
open spine, hardcover
Friedrich Ludmann, DE
Japan 95
18 x 27 cm, 45pp
Japanese binding, die-cut felt cover
@friedrichludmann
friedrichludmann.com
Youtube video ↗
Yan Miranda Mayer, CH/BR
Reverie Rebirth
29,8 x 36,3 cm, 44pp
spiral binding, softcover
Dummy Award ’25
Run
27 September–26 October 2025
Entry
Free
Opening hours
11am-5:30pm. Closed on Mondays.
