Head On Photo Festival 2024
Head On Photo Festival 2024 returns this November to transform Sydney into a photography paradise with major exhibitions at Bondi Pavilion Gallery and outdoors in Paddington and Bondi Beach.
Every year since 2010, Head On Photo Festival offers an incredible opportunity to experience the artistry of emerging and established Australian and international photographers. It’s a wonderful chance to delve deeper into the world through photography and connect with fellow photography enthusiasts.
The 2024 festival is supported by Create NSW, Waverley Council, City of Sydney, international governments, local small businesses and the private sector.
Select featured exhibitions
View all exhibitions and events
✺ Śākti ✺ sky, earth, spirit, body and costume works: a longitudinal study of visual anthropology.
In the 1990s, I was in my twenties and returned home to Malaysia after five years of studying in the US. Soon after I arrived, I realised with alarm that I had somehow forgotten where I ‘came from’.
Dreams of Flying
Crossing the desert on a dog’s back, searching for treasures beneath the ocean, or soaring like Superman through the city – my photographs bring nostalgic dreams to life.
VILLAGE Hearing the Grass Grow
Traditions are disappearing, languages forgotten, and cultures washed away due to urbanisation. This phenomenon is driven by powerful forces: economics, technology, demographics, and, increasingly, climate change.
Wish You Were Here
This series explores vacation culture amidst the climate crisis and how it plays, often unconsciously, into ‘last-chance tourism’ – tourism to destinations irreparably changed by the climate crisis and may eventually vanish altogether. The more tourists visit these environments, the more widespread the climate crisis becomes, and the more last-chance tourism grows.
Featured exhibitors
Solo exhibitors (A-Z by first name)
Aizhen Jiang, Alain Schroeder, Alejandra López Zaballa, Alena Grom, Andrea Agostini, Andrés Gallego, Barbara Strigel, Bruno Fonseca, Christian Barbé, Cristina Fontsare, Diana Lui, Didi von Boch, Donna Squire, Ella Waldman, Filipe Bianchi, Giancarlo Zuccarone & Federica Prina, Jan von Holleben, Jason Au, Jonathan Jasberg, Lorraine Turci, Manuela Federl, Martina Reyes Guilmant, Matthew Ludak, Mert Berdilek, Michael Coyne, Michel Petillo, Milly Hooper, Monia Marchionni, Paul J Ryan, Rachel Nixon, Rodrigo Koraicho, Roland Ramanan, Sam Ferris, Sarah Palmer, SEANOKKAI., Simon Harsent, Stephen Dupont, Tace Stevens, Tom Franks, Viktor Hübner, Xiaohua Zhang
Group exhibitions (A-Z by title)
“As we can, not as we want.” Six new views on Cuba, AddOn, EnEscena, Head On Exposure Awards, Head On Landscape Awards, Head On Photo Awards Semi-finalists slideshow, Head On Portrait Awards, INTER.Locution, Three contemporary Italian photographers, Queertography
Open exhibitors
Solo exhibitors in Sydney (A-Z by first name)
Belinda Allen, Beth Baker, Calum York, Chrissie Hall, Claudia Chan Shaw, Dex Shepherd, Fiona Henderson, Gavin Libotte , Glenn Porter, Jean Marc La Roque, Justine Kerrigan, Kyle Hoffmann, Luciano Vranich, Luiza Michalewicz, Matteo Gallo, Michael Magee, Minami Ivory, Nic Watt, Nick Bourdaniotis, Nickolas May, Nina Franova, Peter Solness, Phil Bayly, Sarah Ducker, Sharon Zwi, Tim Anastasi, Zoe Morley, Zorica Purlija
Group exhibitions in Sydney (A-Z by title)
Nudes on TAP, Persona: Unveiling through Portraits
Satellite exhibitions (A-Z by first name)
Heather Petty, James Bryans, Julie Millowick, Maree Tonkin, Martine Perret, Sam Strong, Sarah Black, Scott Fredericks
Virtual tour of Head On Photo Festival 2024
Explore some of our major festival venues as part of Head On Photo Festival 2024.
Venues
- Bondi Beach
- Bondi Pavilion Gallery
- Paddington Reservoir Gardens
- University of Technology, Sydney
- WA Museum Boola Bardip
Bondi Pavilion gallery
University of Technology, Sydney
Select Festival events
View all exhibitions and events
2024 Head On Photo Festival launch party
Kickstart our month-long festival of the arts with music, photography, and community on the shores of the dazzling Bondi Beach.
Bridging the gap – First nations photographers
Bridging The Gap brings together three of Australia’s foremost Indigenous photographers to discuss womanhood, gender, and race in a rapidly changing world.
Stand out from the crowd
Learn how to stand out from the crowd and inspire key creative decision makers in the ad world.
Get noticed
Learn from some of Australia’s and overseas foremost industry experts to improve your practice and master your craft.
Photos from the festival
Head On Photo Awards 2024
Exposure Awards
Winner: Antonio Denti
International runner-up: Hadas Motro
Australian runner-up: Sarah Cusack
Finalists: Alain Schroeder, Andrés Gallego, Ashley Moog Bowlsbey, Belinda Richards, Benoit Segalen, Birgit Neiser, Bradley Kanaris, Bri Hammond, Ilmar Karuso, Jaume Llorens, Jon Bader, Kris Anderson, Lin Xiaoping, Matt Deakin, Ramak Bamzar, Sean Izzard, Venkatesh Kittur
Landscape Awards
Winner: Kinga Wrona
International runner-up: Tony Mcateer
Australian runner-up: Frances Suter
Finalists: Alex Smith, AndreJa Ravnak, Anton Surov, Ben Chubb, Brett Canet-Gibson, Daniel Kariko, Eva Schroeder, Fiona Bowring, Frances Suter, Francisco Negroni, Glenn Homann, Graeme Gordon, Hilary Wardhaugh, Ian Everett, Ignacio Palacios, Jason Vassallo, Julie Kenny, Katherine Griffiths, Kavan Chay, Lisa Murray, Lívia Peres, Louise Faulkner, Luke David, Matthew Portch, Michelle Ferreira, Mirja Geh, Nilmini De Silva, Raul Ortiz de Lejarazu Machin, Rea Lamprini Papadopoulou, Rebecca Carter, Robyn Moore, Rodrigo Koraicho, Sari Sutton, Sepa Sama, Simon Harsent, Stephen Stewart, Todd Kennedy, Tracey Scott
Portrait Awards
Winner: Drew Gardner
International runner-up: Melinda Blauvelt
Australian runner-up: Nathan Dyer
Finalists: Alain Schroeder, Alejandra López Zaballa, Alessandro Celante, Amy Woodward, Benny Capp, Birgit Neiser, Connor Jarden, Deirdre Brennan, Drew Gardner, Evan Murphy, Gerrie Mifsud, Grace Costa, Harmen Meinsma, Heidi Margocsy, Helga Salwe, Isa Rus, Jason Langer, Jesus Umbria Brito, Joseph P Smith, Jouk Oosterhof, Julie Sundberg, Justin Mclean, Kate Kennedy, Laura Pannack, Lisa Murray, Lisa Sorgini, Marcus Coblyn, Maria Franklin, Melinda Blauvelt, Mridula Amin, Nathan Dyer, Nneka Iwunna Ezemezue, Penelope Green, Robin Fox, Simon Harsent, Su Cassiano, Tatsuo Suzuki, Tim Anger, Vicki Jones, Vladimir Karamazov
Winners and runners up
Downloadable Festival program
Tell us about your favourite moment of the Festival, or leave us a testimonial.
Tell us what you think
To revisit Head On Photo Festival 2024, you can view the 2024 exhibitions online here.
We couldn’t be more grateful to everyone who participated, attended, volunteered and helped us deliver this Festival.
The scope of Head On Photo Festival 2025 is still up in the air, but we will be looking for diverse, engaging, quality work in all genres across still photography, multi-media, and video art for the 2025 program. So, make sure to sign up for our mailing list to be the first to know when submissions open!
And finally… we still need your support.
2025 will also be extremely challenging as inadequate public funding, decreased commercial sponsorship and increased costs all contribute to significant uncertainty about the viability of Head On Photo Festival in the future.
If you can support the Festival so we can continue to do great things in the future, donate now and spread the word if you want to keep the Festival going as it is. Donations over $2 are tax deductible for Australian taxpayers.
Explore the festival
Enthralling. Enchanting. Extraordinary. Discover exceptional photography for free around Sydney during the festival 8 Nov–1 Dec 2024