The Largest Prize Fund For Irish Photographers Is Open For Entries
Trish Lambe, Photo Museum Ireland, Adam Griffiths, Taylor Wessing, Louise O’Reilly, Business to Arts. © Mark Steadman
The Largest Prize Fund For Irish Photographers Is Open For Entries
Text: Izzy Copestake
Photographers, this one’s for you.
Irish photography just got a huge funding boost. The prestigious Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Prize 2026 has officially opened for entries in Ireland. With a total prize fund of €25,000, it now stands as the most valuable award of its kind in the country.
This prize is a collaboration between Taylor Wessing, Photo Museum Ireland, and Business to Arts, and is designed to spotlight the huge breadth of photographic talent across Ireland. It offers photographers a rare chance at both substantial financial support and a high-profile platform. Shortlisted and winning works will be exhibited at Photo Museum Ireland next spring, followed by national and international promotion.
The theme for this year’s award is Community / Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine – “It is in each other’s shadow that we live.” Photographers who wish to enter are invited to interpret ideas of connection, belonging, and shared life in modern Ireland, whether that’s through documentary work, portraiture, conceptual projects, or experimental image-making.
As part of the announcement, Taylor Wessing, Photo Museum Ireland, and Business to Arts, are also launching a €10,000 Taylor Wessing Irish Photo Bursary, created specifically for a photographer from an underrepresented community. The bursary is intended to give one artist meaningful time and resources to develop their practice, and signals a clear commitment to greater equity in the arts.
Who can apply?
Pretty much anyone working with photography or lens-based media who is 18+ and Irish or based in Ireland and Northern Ireland. Entry is free, accessibility supports are available, and submissions are open until 11 January 2026.
Leading curators, critics, and writers on the judging panel, including Zoë Harrison, Anne Nwakalor, Fintan O’Toole, Trish Lambe, and Darren Campion. This prize is set to become a major annual moment for photography on the island.
For full details and to enter, visit: https://photomuseumireland.ie/taylorwessingirishphotoprize/
