Sasha Kurmaz's photobook 'Red Horse' has won the 2026 Kraszna-Krausz photography book award, described by judges as 'a visceral album of living through modern conflict, specifically the war in Ukraine.' The award, which recognises outstanding contributions to photography and moving-image work through books, also named Onyeka Igwe as the winner of the moving image book award for 'June Givanni: The Making of a Pan-African Cinema Archive.'
Winning Book: A Raw Portrait of War
The judges stated that Kurmaz 'creates multiple pages that embody the precariousness of existence, each presenting the raw brutality of conflict. The book serves as an archive of his everyday life and the lives of those around him, its pages constantly being reshaped by the war.' The winning and longlisted books will be displayed as part of the Kraszna-Krausz Photobook Weekender at POST in Brighton on 4 and 5 July.
Longlist Highlights: Race, Climate, and Hauntology
This year's longlist includes 10 books, spanning topics from race and representation to climate change and hauntology. Among them is 'Black Chronicles: Photography, Race and Difference in Victorian Britain' by Renée Mussai, which judge Jermaine Francis called 'a gift of real importance and significance. It destroys the preconceptions of Black presence only after Windrush by presenting a collection of Black portraiture from the Victorian period.'
Personal Narratives and Identity
Janet Delaney's 'Too Many Products Too Much Pressure' follows her father in his last week as a beauty product salesman. Judge Diane Smyth described it as 'a gentle, humorous and ultimately moving portrait of a man and his work,' including transcripts of conversations with customers and texts by Delaney and her mother, showing 'the value of an easily overlooked community.'
Swan Moon's 'Swan Moon' was praised by judge Fiona Rogers for weaving 'a curious mix of 1950s vintage nostalgia with the faded glamour of 1990s Hollywood,' combining portraiture and performance in luminous black and white to offer 'a distinctive perspective on youth culture and the enduring concept of the American dream.'
Climate Change and Chaos
Bryan Anselm's 'Sound the Sirens' features tightly cropped frames of disorientating scenes from Hurricane Michael's aftermath. Judge Diane Smyth noted it 'lays out our messy impending future with a sense of the chaos it will evoke,' eschewing straight narratives that retain a sense of control.
Historical Reckoning
'The Weight of the Word' by Piero Martinello and Piero Casentini combines archival medical images and official portraits to suggest the role photography played in legitimising nine Nazi doctors. Smyth described it as 'quietly chilling,' with a modest production that conveys 'a compelling sense of gravity and economy – this is information that needs to be shared.'
Raymond Thompson Jr's 'It's Hard to Stop Rebels That Time Travel' explores hauntology and the story of Maroons who escaped slavery in the US. Francis said the book features 'photographs, historical texts, documents and newspaper articles' that become 'portals – entry points to conceptually travel through time.'
Queer Spaces and Colonial Legacies
Arthur Tress's 'The Ramble' documents the cruising scene in 1960s Central Park. Francis highlighted the participatory process: 'men looking at men cruising; Tress looking at them through his lens; and now us, as participants in this process decades later.'
Hoda Afshar's 'The Fold' reassesses photography's colonial entanglements, drawing on the archive of Gaëtan Gatian de Clérambault. Rogers said Afshar 'stages a critical intervention through cropping, fragmentation, and repetition,' destabilising notions of the exotic and confronting 'persistent complexities surrounding women, visibility and concealment.'
David Alekhuogie's 'A Reprise' critiques the legacies of African art through staged photography and Dada-inspired collage, drawing on Walker Evans' 1935 commission. Rogers called it 'a playful yet provocative critique' that raises 'vital questions about authenticity and artistic authorship.'
The longlist also includes 'The Fold' and 'The Ramble,' with all books on display at the Photobook Weekender in Brighton.
