Representing Pride


Tuition-free photography workshop with Tanya Habjouqa, focussing on LGBTQIA+ stories from the Mediterranean Basin.




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Deadline for applications:

April 16, 2023, 11:59 PM



Representing Pride is a tuition-free educational program for emerging and early-career visual storytellers from or based in the Mediterranean basin, creating new bodies of work around LGBTQIA+ stories. The program includes a four-day in-person visual storytelling/photography workshop to be held in Malta, in tandem with online modules, organised by HOLMA in collaboration with EuroPride Valletta 2023.

EuroPride is a pan-European international LGBTQIA+ event featuring a Pride parade, hosted by a different European city each year. WorldPride, organised by InterPride (International Pride Organisers Association, of which EPOA is a part), is an international Pride event that promotes LGBTQIA+ issues on a global level.

EuroPride Valletta 2023 is the international event bringing together the LGBTQIA+ community worldwide for ten days of awareness, celebration and entertainment. EuroPride Valletta 2023 will take place from the 7th until the 17th September 2023 in Valletta, the capital city of Malta, with initiatives spanning all over the Maltese islands. The event is hosted by Allied Rainbow Communities and supported by the Government of Malta – Parliamentary Secretariat for Reforms and Equality.

The Representing Pride workshop is intended for photographers to not only develop a new body of work, to be showcased at the international EuroPride Valletta 2023 Festival, but also to expand the participants' professional skills and network. Throughout the programme, the participating photographers will further their capacity for developing powerful and ethically-made stories that engage with diverse and accurate representations of the LGBTQIA+ community in varying cultures and countries across the Mediterranean.

Applicants must be a resident of, or a national of, a country within the Mediterranean Basin. 


What successful applicants will receive:


  • Selected participants will receive a tuition-free, complete educational program over the course of 5 months, including 3 online mentorship sessions and a four-day in-person workshop to take place in Malta between 9-12th June 2023.
  • Participants will be led by internationally recognised, and award-winning photographer and mentor Tanya Habjouqa, as well as given additional resources by regional experts and artists from the LGBTQIA+ community, who work within the region, and whose professional practice corresponds to the theme of Representing Pride.
  • The new bodies of work created during the workshop will be presented in the form of an exhibition as a part of the official EuroPride Valletta 2023 festival to be held in September 2023 in Malta.
  • Participants based outside of the Maltese islands are eligible for reimbursement, for their transportation costs to and from the Maltese islands for the attendance of the workshop. (Up to a maximum of 300 euros per participant).
  • Free accommodation will be provided for all participants.


Practical Information about the in-person workshop


  • The in-person workshop will take place between the 9-12th of June 2023 at Rosa Kwir, Malta.
  • The 3 online workshop modules will be held monthly
  • The workshop will be taught in English.
  • The participating photographers are expected to bring their own gear.
  • Any participants who wish to have their attendance to the workshop remain private


Region


Representing Pride seeks to empower and embrace talent from all corners of the Mediterranean Basin, inspiring a mix of Mediterranean visual languages and skill sets from across the region. In doing so, this photogragraphy workshop hopes to nurture long-term regional collaboration and networking. Representing Pride is open to photographers from the Mediterranean basin, with a focus on creating an expansive network between the region. 

Applicants must be a resident of, or originating from, a country within the Mediterranean Basin: Albania, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus,  Egypt, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Montenegro, Morocco, Palestine, Slovenia, Spain, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey.


The Workshop


  • 4 day tuition-free in-person workshop that will take place at Rosa Kwir, Malta between 9-12th June.
  • 8 participants from across the Mediterranean basin.
  • Mentored by world-renowned photographer Tanya Habjouqa.
  • The mentor and participants will be supported by an on-site workshop Facilitator.
  • The workshop will focus on research, identifying a subject, technique, composition and storytelling in photography to create impactful and ethical visual stories around LGBTQIA+ subjects.
  • A core part of the in-person workshop is to facilitate connection between participants, encourage peer-to-peer feedback, and collaboration opportunities thereby creating a network and community of Mediterranean photographers and talent.


Online Mentoring


Online mentorship in one-on-one conversations between mentor and participant. 3x30 minute session per candidate with the mentor over the course of 3 months. 


Mentors and facilitator


Participants of Representing Pride will be mentored by internationally acclaimed and published photojournalists, will be selected from and working within the region, and whose professional practice corresponds to the theme of Pride.


Mentor: Tanya Habjouqa


Tanya Habjouqa’s work focuses on gender, identity, and socio-political issues in the Middle East and Europe. With an exploratory and playful approach to her practice, Habjouqa creates an intuitive sense of metaphor beneath her work. Habjouqa is an artist, educator, and member of NOOR Images. Her work has been exhibited worldwide and is in the permanent collections of the MFA  Boston, Institut du Monde Arabe, and the Carnegie Museum of art. Habjouqa is represented by East Wing Gallery in Doha, Qatar.


Organiser: Samira Damato


Samira is a curator and filmmaker based between Malta and The Netherlands. Samira has worked with multiple high-calibre cultural foundations, NGO’s and institutions, such as the World Press Photo Foundation (curator), NOOR images (Head of Education and Exhibitions), Greenpeace EA, Friends of the Earth, a Jury Member for the Pride Photo Awards 2022, and the Lead Curator of the Pride Photo Awards 2023.


Expected Outcome


Through this dedicated workshop, photographers will complete a new body of photographic work around the subject Representing Pride. The new bodies of work created during the workshop will be presented in the form of an exhibition as a part of the official EuroPride Valletta 2023 festival to be held in September 2023 in Malta.

The bodies of work will remain the exclusive property of the attending photographers, and may not be used or shown outside of the context of EuroPride 2023. Participants may not impose any additional licensing fees to EuroPride 2023.


Application Process


  • Apply via Picter portal
  • Application open 26/03/2023
  • Application deadline is 16/04/2023 (23:59 hrs CET)

APPLY HERE



Judging criteria


  • Participants will be selected based on the quality of their work, factoring in critical aspects such as gender parity, inclusivity and equality, as well as the relevance to the subject of previous bodies of work.
  • Visual approach, language and technical skill
  • Story, narrative and conceptualisation
  • Representation of a diverse range of stories and storytellers
  • Alignment and relevance of the maker to their subject


Candidate Requirements

  • Candidates must be proficient in English.
  • Applicants must be a resident of, or originating from, a country within the Mediterranean Basin: Albania, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus,  Egypt, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Montenegro, Morocco, Palestine, Slovenia, Spain, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey.
  • There is no age limit for candidates.
  • Applicants and participants reserve the right to remain anonymous. 



Contact details for submitters*

Terms and conditions*

  • Applicants must be a resident of, or originating from, a country within the Mediterranean Basin: Albania, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus,  Egypt, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Montenegro, Morocco, Palestine, Slovenia, Spain, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey. The organising bodies retain the right to exclude the entries of applicants that do not meet these criteria.
  • All material provided in the entries submitted to Representing Pride must be the property and creation of the applicant.
  • Participating photographers retain copyright of all work produced for Representing Pride. Copyright holders grant the HOLMA and EuroPride unlimited non-exclusive use of high-resolution photographs for activities in all media, including social media, online and print, in relation to the contest, the exhibition, promotional and educational activities for Holma and Europride 2023, without any remuneration being due.