William and Winifred Bowness Photography Prize

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Applications close
13 June 2025
Announced
18 September 2025
Prize money
AUD $45,000
Location
VIC, Australia
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William and Winifred Bowness Photography Prize

The prize invites entries from artists working with photography. Entries for the Bowness Photography Prize will be considered from still photo-based media including analogue and digital photography, produced within the last year.

This year we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the prize, seeing some significant changes that enable a rich prize offering.

We’re pleased to announce an increase to $50,000 for the winner and $2,500 cash awarded to two Honourable Mentions. Shortlisted artists will also be paid loan fees for the exhibition of their works.

These changes have been enabled by a substantial philanthropic gift from the Bowness Family Foundation, which reinforces the prominence of the prize and cements the importance of photography into the future. All finalists are eligible to be selected for the Wai Tang Commissioning Award, an initiative of the MAPh Foundation as part of the Bowness Photography Prize.

The recipient will be awarded $10,000 in cash, with the opportunity to exhibit a body of work in the following year's Bowness Photography Prize exhibition. One finalist will also be voted as the winner of the $5000 Community Bank Pinewood People's Choice Award. Voting commences at the opening of the exhibition and can take place online or in person.

Venue: Museum of Australian Photography, Melbourne, VIC

Contact: for more information e: bowness@monash.vic.gov.au

Banner image: 2022 winner Amos Gebhardt

Summary
Application dates
17 April 2025 - 13 June 2025
Exhibition dates
13 September 2025 - 19 November 2025
Finalists notified
27 July 2025
Eligibility
National Entries
Prize frequency
Annual
Judges
Shaune Lakin Senior Curator, Photography at the National Gallery of Australia; Anne Zahalka Artist + Winner of the Bowness Photography Prize 2023; Anouska Phizacklea MAPh Director
Prize genre
Photography
Location
Museum of Australian Photography, Melbourne, VIC
VIC
Australia
Prizes
AUD $45,000
Fees
$55.00 per entry
Last updated
27 May 2025
Prior Winners
2024: Robert Fielding - Winner ($30,000)
2023: Anne Zahalka - Winner ($30,000)
2022: Amos Gebhardt - Winner ($30,000)
2022: Paula Mahoney - Wai Tang Commissioning Award ($10,000)
2021: Lililian O'Neil - Winner ($30,000)
2020: Christian Thompson - Winner ($30,000)
2019: Katrin Koenning - Winner ($30,000)
2018: Hoda Afshar - Winner ($30,000)
2017: Nasim Nasr - People's Choice ($5,000)
2017: Polixeni Papapetrou - Winner ($30,000)
2016: Dasha Reiley - People's Choice ($1,000)
2016: Valerie Sparks - Winner ($25,000)
2015: Joseph McGlennon - Winner ($25,000)