Welcome to this year’s 21st annual PhotoNOLA Festival of photography here in New Orleans. The heart of PhotoNOLA runs from December 2-6, 2026 includes exhibitions, artists panels, portfolio reviews, a keynote lecture, reception and benefit party, a portfolio PhotoWalk, PhotoBOOK Fair, and other educational programming for photographers and enthusiasts. PhotoNOLA celebrates photography throughout the month of December with exhibitions, artist talks and workshops held throughout the city.
Wednesday, December 2
PhotoNOLA Opening Night at the New Orleans Museum of Art / 1 Collins Diboll Cir, New Orleans, LA 70124
5:30-6:15 PM –
Gallery talk with NOMA Curator Brian Piper on the exhibition “Confluence: The Tina Freeman Collection of Photographs”
6:30 – 7:30 PM –
Panel Discussion: “The Work We Live With: Women in Photography” featuring Tina Freeman, Sienna Pinderhughes, and Daniella Zalcman. Moderated by Emilia Mickevicius.
7:30 – 8:00 PM –
Confluence exhibition catalogue signing with Piper, Mickevicius, Freeman, and Pinderhughes
Presented in partnership with the New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA), and in celebration of the opening of the exhibition “Confluence: The Tina Freeman Collection of Photographs,” join PhotoNOLA in NOMA’s Lapis Center for the Arts for an intergenerational conversation about the exhibition and career experiences in the field of photography.
Panelists include photographer and filmmaker Sienna Pinderhughes; photographer, professor, and organizer Daniella Zalcman, and photographer, curator, and collector Tina Freeman. The conversation will be moderated by Emilia Mickevicius, Norton Family Assistant Curator of Photography at the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona and contributing essayist for the exhibition catalogue.
The panel discussion will be preceded by a 5:30 PM Gallery Talk from Brian Piper, NOMA’s Freeman Family Curator of Photographs, Prints, and Drawings. Following the discussion, a book signing for the Confluence exhibition catalogue with Piper, Mickevicius, Freeman, and Pinderhughes will be held in the NOMA Museum Shop.
Registration is highly recommended [LINK HERE] and free with either a PhotoNOLA Festival Pass (details below), or Louisiana Residency.
Thursday, December 3
Portfolio Reviews / International House Hotel, 221 Camp Street New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM –
Photographers and portfolio reviewers meet to discuss their work and network. For more information or to sign up for reviews. To learn more click here.
Workshop Schedule Forthcoming
Keynote Lecture with Sharon Farmer, Ashé Cultural Arts Center / 1712 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd, New Orleans, LA 70113
7:00–8:15 PM – Keynote Lecture with Sharon Farmer
Sharon Camille Farmer is an American photographer with a long list of accomplishments and a wide-ranging photographic practice She was the first African-American woman to be hired as a White House photographer and the first African American and first female to be Director of the White House Photography office. A graduate of Ohio State University, Farmer has also worked for Smithsonian Institution, The Washington Post, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and worked as a freelance photojournalist. Her exhibitions include Art against AIDS, Gospel in the Projects, Twenty Years on the Mall, Washington, D.C. – Beijing Exchange, and Our Views of Struggle. A highly engaging public speaker, Sharon Farmer’s keynote address at PhotoNOLA promises to be one of the best in years. This is a ticketed event (details below).
PhotoNOLA Benefit Bash
8:30 PM – 10:30 PM – Benefit Bash / Keynote Reception
Following the keynote lecture, the New Orleans Photo Alliance will host a benefit fundraiser, join us for an evening of live music, food, drinks, and a curated auction in support of the New Orleans Photo Alliance (the organization that produced PhotoNOLA). All proceeds support the New Orleans Photo Alliance and PhotoNOLA’s year-round exhibitions, education, and community programming. This is a ticketed event (details below).
Tickets:
Keynote/Benefit Bash $65
Keynote/Benefit Bash + Festival Pass $80
TICKETS
All proceeds support the New Orleans Photo Alliance and PhotoNOLA’s year-round exhibitions, education, and community programming.
Friday, December 4
Portfolio Reviews / International House Hotel, 221 Camp Street New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM –
Photographers and portfolio reviewers meet to discuss their work and network. For more information or to sign up for reviews. To learn more click here.
Workshop/PhotoLearn Talks Schedule Forthcoming
Friday Night at the Ogden Museum: CURRENTS + PhotoWALK / 925 Camp St, New Orleans, LA 70130
5:30 – 6:30 –
Exhibition walkthrough with Ogden Curator for the exhibition In the Eyes and Mind of the Feral Child: The Art of Tom McNease
6:30 – 7:00 –
CURRENTS Exhibition Opening and introduction by juror Bill Bolling
7:00 PM – 9:00 PM –
PhotoWALK featuring work by photographers from PhotoNOLA’s Portfolio Reviews, Book Publishers and Sponsors. Meet the artists, explore and take home new work and photo books.
Saturday December 5
PhotoBOOK Fair at the Ogden Museum / Patrick F. Taylor Library, 925 Camp St, New Orleans, LA 70130
11:00 AM–4:00 PM –
The PhotoBOOK Fair returns to the historic Patrick F. Taylor Library at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art. This event offers you the chance to peruse a beautiful array of contemporary photobooks & zines, and engage with the artists and publishers who created them. Free with PhotoNOLA Festival Pass (details below)
The PhotoBook fair includes a full schedule of artist talks and panels, schedule forthcoming.
Citywide Exhibition Openings
Official PhotoNOLA and fStop 504 Manifest Opening Party at Contemporary Arts Center / 900 Camp St, New Orleans, LA 70130
9:00 PM – 12:00 AM –
Reconnect and celebrate at the official PhotoNOLA and fStop 504 Manifest Opening Party at Contemporary Arts Center. Beverages and food available for purchase.
Tickets:
Keynote/Benefit Bash $65
Keynote/Benefit Bash + Festival Pass $80
TICKETS
All proceeds support the New Orleans Photo Alliance and PhotoNOLA’s year-round exhibitions, education, and community programming.
Sunday December 6
The 2026 Cahn-Lawrence Photography Lecture + Community Gathering at The Historic New Orleans Collection / Williams Research Center, 410 Chartres Street
1:00 PM – 4:00 PM –
The Photography of Harold Baquet: Lecture, Panel Discussion and Community Photo Reception
Join internationally renowned photography scholar, artist, and curator Dr. Deborah Willis for a special program celebrating the life, work, and legacy of New Orleans photographer Harold Baquet. Willis will open the program by placing Baquet’s work within the broader history of Black photography in America.
Baquet spent decades documenting New Orleans, creating an extraordinary visual record of the city’s Black political, cultural, and community life. His photographs capture both pivotal public moments and the people whose everyday lives shaped the city. Following Willis’s presentation, moderator Lynette Johnson will lead a panel featuring Cheron Brylski and Keith Calhoun..
The program will conclude with a reception and community photo identification session featuring selections from the Harold Baquet Collection.
Presented in partnership with The Historic New Orleans Collection, supported by the Cahn Family. This event is free, but registration is required by the HNOC, and can be found at this link: 2026 CAHN-LAWRENCE PHOTOGRAPHY LECTURE – THE PHOTOGRAPHY OF HAROLD BAQUET.
