Photography Highlights From Les Rencontres d’Arles 2025

Summary

The 2025 edition of Les Recontres d’Arles is now on view in France through October 5.
Centered around the theme “Disobedient Images,” this year’s festival features a packed lineup of exhibitions and events that explore the transformative power of photography.

Once more, it’s the season where photographers from various corners of the globe flock to the southern part of France for Les Rencontres d’Arles. The 2025 festival, running until October 5, is themed “Disobedient Images,” exploring the medium as a tool for resistance, testimony, and societal change.

This year, the event is in its 56th edition and focuses significantly on projects originating from Brazil and Australia. Notable exhibitions delve into themes of identity, history, and visual storytelling. One such exhibition is “Construction, Deconstruction, Reconstruction,” a group show that revisits Brazilian Modernist photography through the innovative perspective of Foto Cine Clube Bandeirante, a São Paulo-based amateur club known for fostering groundbreaking experimentation, thereby altering the trajectory of Brazilian photography. Additionally, “On Country” is a collection of works from Australia that investigate the cultural, spiritual, and ecological bonds between indigenous communities and their land.

Among other noteworthy features is the first European exhibition showcasing Kwame Brathwaite, a renowned American photographer and activist, who coined the phrase “Black is Beautiful.” A pivotal figure in the second Harlem Renaissance, Brathwaite’s vibrant portraits offer fresh perspectives on the Black form through creative, spontaneous photography. In “The Light from Within,” Todd Hido, an American photographer, delves deeper into exploring psychological settings by capturing images of empty houses, dimly lit interiors, and bare trees, all exuding a chilling, movie-like quietude. Furthermore, Claudia Andujar’s “In Place of Another” series offers insights into the artist’s lesser-known facets. Born from the pain of war and displacement, Andujar used photography as a means to forge connections and discover purpose in her new home, Brazil.

Other impressive presentations include Nan Goldin’s emotionally powerful display in her work titled “Stendhal Syndrome“, the captivating “Lost and Found” by the French duo Elsa & Johanna, and Guilherme Cunha’s compelling series called “Retratistas do Morro“.

For more information on the festival, check out Les Rencontres d’Arles’ website.

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