PHILADELPHIA, PA.- In September 2025, Philadelphia celebrates photography! The sixth annual 20/20 Photo Festival will showcase the diversity of contemporary photography through exhibitions, artist talks, demonstrations, workshops, and hands-on public events—all free or low-cost and open to the public. This year's theme, Structures invites artists and audiences alike to explore, represent, and challenge the physical, social, and conceptual structures that shape our lives and our art. A core mission of the Festival is to make photography accessible and welcoming to all, and this year’s programming continues that tradition by providing opportunities for the community to experience photography in fresh, engaging, and inclusive ways. The week of events runs from Thursday, September 4 through Sunday, September 11, 2025, with programming taking place at various locations across the city including KieranTimberlake, The Halide Project, Cherry Street Pier, Unique Photo, and The Frances M. Maguire Museum.
On Thursday, September 4th, KieranTimberlake will host an opening party featuring new work by Krista Svalbonas. Galleries across Philadelphia celebrate First Friday on September 5th including our programming partner The Halide Project who will be presenting Fractured Land: work by Ella Morton and Dafna Talmo. A full day of free and interactive programming will take place at Cherry Street Pier on Saturday, September 6th. Local community darkroom The Halide Project will lead engaging activities that introduce visitors to historic photographic processes and analog tools. In celebration of World Cyanotype Day, artist Jackie Neale will facilitate a community cyanotype portrait. Gravy Studio will organize the photo book fair, gathering a vibrant selection of photographic publications and prints, highlighting the work of both local and national artists. On Sunday, September 7th, we will feature artist talks at Unique Photo Philadelphia to highlight the artists our programming partners are exhibiting this fall including Krista Svalbonas, Donald Camp, and Henry Horenstein among others. We will also take a field trip for the last artist talk of the day to The Frances M. Maguire Museum at St. Joseph’s University to see photo installation work by Julianna Foster and Maria Dumlao.
The main events of the festival run from September 4th to September 11th:
9/4 - 20/20 Photo Festival Opening Party at KieranTimberlake featuring artist Krista Svalbonas
9/5 - First Friday Opening at The Halide Project: Fractured Lands with Ella Morton and Dafna Talmor 9/6 - Photo Book Fair, Workshops, and Exhibitions at Cherry Street Pier - all free to the public
9/7 - Artist Talks at Unique Photo Philadelphia and visit to The Frances M. Maguire Art Museum 9/11 - Second Thursday Opening Receptions at The Crane Arts Building and The Print Center
The 20/20 Photo Festival in Philadelphia was conceptualized by a small but dedicated group of Philadelphia-area photographers and photo organizations, including members from Gravy Studio, The Halide Project, and Wanderlife Gallery. The festival provides opportunities for the exchange of ideas and artistic expression, in a local, national, and international context—reflecting the diversity of contemporary photography and its roots in the historical. The festival aims to make photography accessible to all through free and public programming all designed to both inspire and educate. This includes artist talks, workshops and demonstrations, panel discussions, hands-on public events, exhibitions, and more. The presenting sponsors of the festival are Unique Photo and MPB.
