The 12th edition of Photoimagen 2026 has formally opened at the Museum of Modern Art in Santo Domingo, featuring 20 photography exhibitions across the Dominican Republic.
Organisers launched the festival under the thematic concept of Inner Archipelagos, pairing the series of gallery displays with a completely free educational program of photography and video workshops and panel discussions running through November.
The inaugural ceremony took place at the Museum of Modern Art following a traditional gathering on the building's outdoor esplanade. Visitors filled the venue's entrance before dispersing throughout the multi-story complex to view the inaugural displays.
General director of Photoimagen Mayra Johnson presided over the opening ceremony alongside Museum of Modern Art director Federico Fondeur and Esteban Martinez Murga, the vice president of communication and social responsibility at Banco Popular.
The Museum of Modern Art, located in the cultural district of the Dominican capital of Santo Domingo, serves as the central hub for the festival. Photoimagen is held to showcase visual arts, lens-based media and documentary photography in the Caribbean nation.
Tributes and Award-Winning Showcases
Among the key exhibitions is Quisqueya Henriquez: Archives of the Possible, a retrospective homage paying tribute to the artistic legacy of the late Cuban artist following her premature death. Curated by Acero Ruiz and Alfonsina Martinez, the display was created with support from the Alberto Cruz Foundation.
International photography is featured in The Big Story, an exhibition mounted at the Museum of Modern Art with the support of the German Embassy in the Dominican Republic. The showcase presents winning works from the Leica Oskar Barnack Award, highlighting four decades of global photography recognised by the historic German camera manufacturer.
Environmental themes take centre stage in Excessocenus, a project that won a Greenpeace Photo Award for its visual documentation of how excessive consumerism impacts emerging economies and territories. The exhibition is a joint creation by Spanish photographer Cristina de Middel, who received Spain's National Photography Prize in 2017, and Brazilian photographer and visual educator Bruno Morais, with sponsorship from the Embassy of Spain in the Dominican Republic.
Caribbean Perspectives and Educational Programs
The Museum of Modern Art is also hosting Photobooks: Image, Memory and Narrative, featuring selected works from both national and international visual artists. A separate installation titled The Caribbean: The Infinite Machine, From the Sugar Mill to AI, created by Carlos Acero Ruiz and Ricardo Arispe, explores technological and economic shifts across the region.
Caribbean identity is further explored in Archetypes Caribbean: Photographic Perspectives, a joint exhibition supported by the Leon Jimenes Foundation and the Leon Center. The display brings together works by veteran Puerto Rican photographer Hector Mendez Caratini and prominent Dominican photographer Mariano Hernandez, who is participating in this year's festival.
The opening event drew cultural figures, artists and members of the public, including Pedro Genaro, Guadalupe Casasnovas, Luisa Valdez, Luis Nova, Valeria Pocaterra and Maike Friedrichsen, who gathered to inaugurate the multi-month cultural program.
The festival's exhibitions, workshops and public talks will take place across various artistic and cultural venues in Santo Domingo and Santiago through November, offering free access to visitors and aspiring visual creators.
