FRANKFURT.- The Philippines – a country made up of thousands of islands and over 130 languages – is an archipelago of many voices and identities. Change and resilience lie at the heart of Philippine life, shaped by faith and community, a complex history of colonisation and resistance, the richness of Indigenous cultures and the experiences of a global diaspora.

These conditions have given rise to a dynamic and diverse photographic practice that oscillates between the politics of the image and the poetry of new worlds beyond the seemingly predetermined. Consequently, Philippine photography is as multifaceted as the country itself: constantly changing in form and meaning. From a global perspective, it addresses the consequences of migration and globalisation, reflects on environmental awareness in the context of the archipelago and, at the same time, questions the potential and limitations of the medium itself.

New Beginnings: Philippine Photographic Art showcases the work of eight artists from different generations and backgrounds, whose work opens up new perspectives on social realities and cultural transformations.

MM Yu creates site-specific installations from photographs that visualise the changing cityscape of Manila and its people. Her collage-like, mixed-media works condense observations into whimsical abstract constellations that open up new contexts.

In her intimate black-and-white photographs, Xyza Cruz Bacani documents labour migration and human rights. The project We Are Like Air tells the story of her mother and other migrant women in Hong Kong – as an empowering portrait of them as heroines.

Since the 1980s, Nana Buxani has been one of the few women in Philippine photojournalism. Her long-term project on Philippine migrant workers reveals the dignity and sensitivity of these people.

Tommy Hafalla has spent decades photographing the lives and rituals of Indigenous communities in the mountainous Cordillera region. He works with analogue photography and often uses alternative print processes, such as platinum, to emphasise the value of tradition and the local creativity.

Wawi Navarroza explores self-image and female experience. In the work La Bruja (The Witch), she is pictured amongst household items – an ironic examination of the stereotype of Philippine domestic workers abroad, transformed into feminist self- portraits.

The documentary photographer Veejay Villafranca develops long-term projects on social issues such as climate change and spirituality in his home country. In the Signos series, he reveals the complex reality of the disasters caused by Typhoon Yolanda in 2013. His Barrio Sagrado series addresses the fusion and contradictions between Indigenous cultures and the Catholic faith.

Gina Osterloh, a Philippine-American artist, creates staged spaces and uses self-portraiture to experimentally question norms and expectations as a person of mixed heritage. Her tableaus play with the contradictions between surface and depth, appearance and inwardness.

In the deeply personal installation Good Night, Sweet Dreams, the multidisciplinary artist Augustine Paredes reflects on desire and longing within the Philippine diaspora. His work give a voice to unheard migration stories – and attempt to restore dreams and regeneration.

These photographic explorations reflect the theme of the Philippines as guest of honour at the 2025 Frankfurt Book Fair – The imagination peoples the air. New Beginnings showcases the power of contemporary Philippine image makers, who reveal deeply rooted aspects of their culture while expressing an unshakeable hope: to fill the air with imagination.

New Beginnings: Philippine Photographic Art is curated by Patrick Flores, Andrea Horvay, and Celina Lunsford.