The registration deadline for the 2026 Dummy Award has now been extended to February 15th 2026. Get your photobook dummy ready and send us your story!
Read the general information, have a look at our Terms and Conditions or browse through our FAQ’s.
Meet the 2026 Shortlist-Jury*
This year’s jury will consist of a diverse group of professionals from the photobook industry, including a curator, designer, publisher, photographer, collector, and printer. All together will bring a wealth of expertise to the table. The jury will come together in Cologne on the 14th of March 2026.
* Julia Gelezova (IE)
is artistic director at PhotoIreland and co-editor at OVER Journal. PhotoIreland is dedicated to stimulating a critical dialogue around photography in Ireland and to internationally promoting the work of Irish-based artists. In July 2025, PhotoIreland launched the International Centre for the Image, a groundbreaking cultural institution in Dublin’s Docklands
Photo © Evanna Devine
* Frederic Lezmi (DE)
is a photographer, designer and photobook curator. He is artistic director of The PhotoBookMuseum in Cologne, wich he co-founded together with Markus Schaden in 2014. Frederic teaches photobook design at various universities and faculties in Germany (FH Dortmund, FH Hannover and DHBW Ravensburg).
Photo © Oxana Guryanova
* Mimi Mollica (IT/UK)
is a Sicilian-born, London-based photographer whose work explores identity, environment and the social transformations that shape contemporary life. He is the author of Terra Nostra (Dewi Lewis, 2017), East London Up Close (HMP 2020) and Moon City (Dewi Lewis, 2025). He is the founder of Photo Meet, Palermo Photography Workshop and the Sicily Photo Masterclass.
* Ufuk Şahin (TR)
studied photography at Hofstra University, NY. Since 2007, he has been part of the core team at MAS printing house as the second-generation manager and partner. In 2010, he founded MASA, a publishing house specializing in facsimiles, photobooks and art-books; which has since published more than 40 books. He is a photography enthusiast and an avid photobook collector.
* Kathrin Schönegg (DE)
is head of the Photography Department at the Münchner Stadtmuseum and thus responsible for the oldest collection dedicated to photography in Germany. As a freelance curator, she has conceived exhibitions for the Biennale für aktuelle Fotografie, the Berlinische Galerie and the Rencontres d’Arles, France, among others. From 2019-2023 she was co-head of program at C/O Berlin, where she lead the C/O Berlin Talent Award and curated more than 20 solo and thematic exhibitions. As an author, she regularly publishes on photography.
* Francesca Todde (IT)
is a photographer and book designer. She work mainly on personal long-term projects about cultural aspects of the relationship between human and non-human. Together with artist Luca Reffo, she co-founded the art book publisher and design studio Départ Pour l’Image, based in Milan.
Photo © Luca Reffo
* Tom Booth Woodger (UK)
is head of publishing and chief designer at Bluecoat Press and co-founder of Besides Press. For Tom, book design is both collaboration and response: working together with artists to make a publication relies upon exhausting all possibilities in order to arrive at a best possible final form for the work to exist in.
Dummy Award on Tour!
Dummy Award 2025 in Arles
After a wonderful event and presentation at the Rencontres d´Arles this summer the 2025 Dummy Award Shortlist is currently on show at Galerie Fotografic in Prague (30.07–13.09) and made it’s debut in North America at Penumbra Foundation in NYC (20. 08–13.09) as part of their In the Fold Photobook Forum (10.09-13.09) during NY Printed Matters ArtBook Fair.
Penumbra Foundation put together a great lecture program including Dummy Award jury member Luis Weinstein from Chile and our old friend Lukas Birk from Fraglich Publishing on September 11th. Pass by if you are in town!
Next stations on our world tour are Dublin in Ireland at the newly inaugurated International Centre for the Image / PhotoIreland before the dummies go to Bangkok and Santiago de Chile. Exact date and program to follow
Dummy Award 2025 in Prague
currently…
recently…
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Announcing the Dummy Award 2024 winners
We are pleased to announce the 5 winners of the Dummy Award 2024. Out of 51 shortlisted books, the winning titles were selected, taking into account public votes from the 12 international venues where the shortlist has been exhibited and the votes from the 2024 shortlist jury.
All 5 winning books will receive a 25% production grant for printing their books at MAS printing house, Istanbul and our full promotion support.
“fever dream” by Victoria Jung wins the PBM/MAS Prize 2024!
It will be produced and published by MAS Matbaa in cooperation with the PhotoBookMuseum later this year. Stay tuned!
Congratulations to the five artists whose photobooks stood out and convinced both the jury and the visitors!
Lucky
by Edgar Martinez, VE
The Book of the Four Actions
by Colectivo Estética Unisex, MX/ CO
We are very happy to announce:
“fever dream” by Victoria Jung wins the PBM/MAS Prize 2024!
Congratulations from the whole team at the Dummy Award!
“fever dream” will be produced and published by MAS Matbaa in cooperation with the PhotoBookMuseum later this year.
Stay tuned!
23 x 30cm, 160pp
softcover, spiral bound
New Orleans has always been a place of extremes. At least since the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, people here have lived in an environment that is often dilapidated, always threatened, and in many ways defective. Perhaps that’s why those who don’t fit into the system of America find a home here. Queer travelers who have been through a lot in their young lives. Katrina has created gaps that offer shelter. Fueled by the warm spirit of the local population, a group of unique young people was able to flourish. A rebellious and unruly subculture has emerged, cobbling together its own enchanting cosmos of the here and now, where the lights are as bright as the shadows are dark.
Victoria Jung
Tropical Trauma Misery Tour
by Rafael Roncato
“Intriguing and thought-provoking, the “Tropical Trauma Misery Tour” photobook of the Brazilian Rafael Roncato is a brilliant foray into the style of a detective novel, unfolding against the media spectacle surrounding Brazilian President Jair Messias Bolsonaro—The Myth. The focus on the pivotal year of 2018, marked by Bolsonaro’s stabbing during a polarized presidential campaign, sees the former president assuming a central role in an online political campaign where he maintains complete control over his narrative and self-presentation.
The book stands as a testament to creativity, audacity, and exceptional intelligence. I was thoroughly captivated by its enchanting and exotic style, adeptly exploring the intricate political narratives shaping our world. Through a captivating blend of creative elements and editorial tactics, this book emerges as a vital tool, encouraging individuals to widely disseminate its message while condemning the dangers associated with misinformation. The blending of reality becomes a mode of resistance, unfolding as a meta-drama within the realm of political farce. This magnificent piece serves as an ironic guide, decoding the intricacies of Brazilian politics and media manipulation. It not only visually captures the impact of events but also acts as a potent gauge of the blurred line between truth and political performance.
A must-see for those seeking a visual journey into the heart of contemporary Brazilian political discourse, and for other countries that are contagiously impacted by this powerful farce.”
—Ângela Berlinde
Size: 10,8 x 16,9 cm
Pages: 306
softcover
Author: Rafael Roncato
Design: Mateus Acioli
Publisher: MASA / The PhotoBookMuseum / Lovely House
Year: 2024
Language: English
ISBN: 978-85-85039-18-9
Price: 25€
via artbookcologne