PROGRAM

APRIL 25

  • NARRATIVA presents an impactful exhibition by Iranian photographer Newsha Tavakolian, a member of Magnum agency, which is an intimate portrait of a society fighting for freedom and change, built on her personal archive from the beginning of her career and the work she has been developing in recent years.

    In And They Laughed At Me, Newsha Tavakolian presents a photographic narrative constructed in two stages: the author revisits her photographic archive, recovering technically imperfect images from her early years as a photographer, and cross-references it with a new body of intimate and creative work about a society fighting for freedom and change.

    The photographs, initially destined to be discarded, offer an insight into her artistic development and the social context of Iran during the 1990s; the exhibition includes photographs of everyday life in society, landmark events in the country and moments from the author's private life – reflecting a time of hope and reform under Khatami's presidency.

    However, Newsha Tavakolian's retrospective is tinged with sadness and disappointment, as she recognises that the promised freedoms have not been fulfilled. Another dimension of her photography over the last decade denotes a detachment from the past, embracing an intimate exploration of the authenticity of Iranian society that reflects her personal and professional growth in a context of political unrest in Iran.

APRIL 26

  • Portfolio review with Newsha Tavakolian

    An opportunity to analyse your work with the guest author of CICLO 2025. Newsha Tavakolian, in addition to developing long-term projects, publishes her work in different media such as Time Magazine, The New York Times, British Journal of Photography, among others. She is a member of Magnum Photos.

    Portfolio review with Mário Cruz

    The session aims to showcase projects and work that will be presented and exhibited at NARRATIVA. It is also an opportunity for those interested in applying for the NARRATIVA Masterclass to show their portfolio.

    Portfolio review with publisher GOST Books

    GOST Books is an independent visual arts and photography publisher based in London, UK. It has published books by Larry Towell, Nikita Teryoshin, Mark Power, Jillian Edelstein, Bruce Gilden, Don McCullin, Lydia Goldblatt, Ian Berry, Moises Saman, Yelena Yemchuk, Emma Hardy, Jonas Bendiksen, Alys Tomlinson and Martin Parr, among others.

    Online registration required via form.

  • The director and co-founder of GOST Books, Stuart Smith, presents some of the works of the independent visual arts and photography publisher based in London, UK. In recent years, GOST Books has published books by authors such as Don McCullin, Martin Parr, Mark Power, Larry Towell, Nikita Teryoshin, Jillian Edelstein, Bruce Gilden, Lydia Goldblatt, Ian Berry, Moises Saman, Yelena Yemchuk, Emma Hardy, Jonas Bendiksen, Alys Tomlinson, among others.

  • Davide Degano's Romanzo Meticcio explores contemporary Italian identity, challenging traditional narratives and uncovering hidden stories. The work examines Italy's struggle to recognise its multicultural reality and connects its colonial past to current social issues. Degano uses an interdisciplinary approach, combining photography with archival research and emphasising intersectionality to show how different forms of marginalisation intersect.  Degano encourages a critical examination of Italy's past and present, promoting a nuanced understanding of what it means to be Italian.

  • The author of And They Laughed At Me, talks about the project that occupies NARRATIVA's gallery and which was built in two stages – moving between archives from the beginning of her photographic career and more recent work, resulting in a contemporary observation of the social and cultural challenges facing Iranian society.

APRIL 27

  • Iranian photographer Newsha Tavakolian, from Magnum Photos, discusses her working process, based on observing the work of ten participants in this masterclass. The session is private and lasts three hours.

    Limited to ten participants.

    Cost: 100€

  • Spanning 15 years of work, Believe is a photographic monograph that brings together the artist’s personal archive in a new series of visual abstractions that are at once cosmic and haunting. A visualization of non-linear time, his images are more than photographs; they are visceral, poetic fantasies that submerge, thaw, and conceal, both visually and technically. Through his surreal dreamscapes, Infante contemplates the projection of the existential self, caught between individual fantasy and earthly reality. The book is published by Portuguese publisher XYZ Books.

  • The Open Call Emergentes aims to give visibility to projects by new authors. In this session, the three works of the three selected emerging authors will be presented.

    The call is open until March 25th.

    More information here.

  • Maria is the first book by Portuguese photographer Maria Abranches. 

    Distinguished by the World Press Photo, Cortona On The Move Prize and the FNAC Novos Talentos Award, Maria tells a story shared by countless women whose silent contribution builds, shapes and sustains the world as we know it. 

    “Ana Maria was born in Angola, brought to Portugal at the age of nine and, in her own words, spent her whole life cleaning”, explains the author about this project.

    The work was developed from scratch in the NARRATIVA Masterclass and is now presented in book format.

    Pre-order of the book is available here.

PARTICIPANTS

  • Newsha Tavakolian, a Magnum Photos member born in 1981 in Tehran, is an Iranian photographer, visual artist, and educator known for her work that captures the human condition. Tavakolian began her career in photography at a young age, eventually becoming a prominent figure in the field. She has covered a wide range of topics, from the challenges faced by women in Iran and worldwide to the aftermath of tensions in conflict zones. Her work often combines artistry with documentary, blurring the lines between reality and the imagined. 

    Throughout her career, Newsha Tavakolian has received numerous awards, such as the Carmignac Gestion Award and the Prince Claus Award. Tavakolian’s work has found its place in the private collections of international institutions, including the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), the British Museum, Sackler Gallery and the Boston Museum of Fine Art.

  • Stuart Smith is the director and co-founder of GOST Books, an independent publisher based in London that specializes in visual arts and photography. With a background in design, Smith has played a pivotal role in shaping the unique identity and approach of GOST Books.

  • Davide Maria Degano is an Italian photographer whose work is driven by research-based projects, exploring themes such as history, cultural identity, and collective memory.

    He earned a BA in Visual Arts, specializing in photography, from the Royal Academy of Art (KABK) in The Hague, where he received an honorable mention for the Paul Schuitema Award. He is currently pursuing a Master's in Visual Arts at KASK, Royal Academy of Arts in Ghent, and in 2024, he was awarded the MasterMind scholarship by the Flemish Government in support of his studies.

    His work has been featured in numerous national and international group and solo exhibitions and has been published in outlets such as PhotoVogue, Urbanautica, British Journal of Photography, It’s Nice That, Icon Magazine, Der Greif, and Camera Austria.

    Degano published his first book, Sclavanie, with Penisola Edizioni, in collaboration with the Urbanautica Institute. In 2023, he was selected for Giovane Fotografia Italiana and won the Discovery Award at Encontros da Imagem in Portugal. In 2024, he received the Liquida Grant for the publication of his second book, Romanzo Meticcio.

  • David Infante is an artist who primarily works with traditional photography. He holds a PhD in Fine Arts, specializing in Art and Multimedia, from the University of Lisbon, and a Master's degree in Contemporary Photography from the Royal College of Arts (2017).

    He was awarded the BES Revelação Prize in 2008 by Banco Espírito Santo / Serralves Museum and, in 2007, received the Pedro Miguel Frade Prize, granted by the Portuguese Center of Photography. In 2014, he was selected for the Descubrimientos program at PHotoESPAÑA.

    His work has been exhibited in various galleries and museums, with recent shows at Galeria La Ira de Dios, Buenos Aires (AR), the wip show at the Royal College of Arts, London (UK), Galeria Módulo, Lisbon (PT), and Villa Tamaris Centre d’Art, Toulon (FR).

    David’s work has been featured in multiple publications and is part of prestigious collections, including the National Photography Collection / Portuguese Center of Photography, the PLMJ Foundation Collection, and the Novo Banco Collection.

    He is currently a lecturer at the University of Évora.

  • Maria Abranches is an independent documentary photographer with a keen interest in human rights issues.

    She graduated in Architecture from the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Lisbon (2016) and in Photography from ArCo (2022).

    She participated in the 5th edition of the NAARATIVA Masterclass, where she developed her latest project and book, MARIA, which tells the story of Ana Maria, an Angolan woman, addressing issues of race, gender, and the role of racialized women in Portugal, where the social structure is still heavily shaped by its colonial past.

    Her work was distinguished by the World Press Photo, Cortona On The Move Award and FNAC New Talents Award.

  • Mário Cruz is an independent photographer, editor and curator dedicated to themes related to human rights and social injustice.

    Double World Press Photo winner with the projects Talibes Modern Day Slaves and Living Among What’s Left Behind.

    He is the founder of NARRATIVA, a cultural space in Lisbon that promotes photography as a form of expression and communication.

  • Founded in 2012, GOST Books is an independent visual arts and photography publisher based in London.

    Distinguished by an uncategorisable output of diverse subject matter and design: from a chronicle of seven men claiming to be the Messiah; a study of Turkish soap operas; art works inspired by the largest breeding grounds for flamingos in the Southern Hemisphere; archive photographs from the Mexico City police department; to portraits of winners of state-run competitions in Belarus.

    GOST seeks not only to provide a platform for the work of emerging artists but also to contribute to the print legacies of masters in the medium.

  • Fujifilm Portugal supports NARRATIVA since its foundation, promoting the development of free access workshops, exhibitions and socially-oriented projects.

  • Founded in 1993, Moldura Minuto is the largest company in its field operating in Portugal, offering an innovative framing and fine-art printing service.

    Moldura Minuto provides a fundamental support to NARRATIVA in the production of all exhibitions.