The Work in Context International Symposium of Central European Photography series explores the unique strengths and challenges of the region’s photography scene.

The first edition, Past, Present, and Future, directly engaged with photography through these concepts. The second took a closer look at the region through geography in the Landscape of Photography, while the third explored social urgency under the theme of Responsibility. This edition raises the question of how meaningful dialogue can be maintained across echo chambers and amid the noise of reductive slogans.

More information about previous editions of the symposium is available here: https://workincontext.mome.hu/

This call invites you to explore the overlooked and underexplored aspects of photography in Central Europe. The symposium seeks to re-examine established narratives by rejecting dichotomies such as good and bad, or fresh and outdated. Instead, it encourages experts to share nuanced perspectives, to acknowledge the coexistence of compatible yet divergent truths, and to favour differentiated viewpoints. We particularly welcome proposals that address how memory, politics, and systemic legacies shape photographic practices, especially when seen through the eyes of those on the margins, including politically oppressed, female, or émigré artists. This edition coincides with two significant milestones: the bicentenary of photography and the 40th anniversary of academic photography education in Hungary. By connecting these anniversaries, the 4th WiC will examine the complex transformation of photography as both an art and a technology in the context of the region’s tumultuous past and uncertain futures. We invite reflection on an increasingly polarized and fragile world by interrogating contrasts and juxtapositions of opposites, often compellingly phrased in oxymorons. A dozen examples are provided below as possible points of departure for presentations, lectures, or discussions; alternative ideas and proposals are equally welcome.

Submission Deadline: 10 November 2025
Notification of Acceptance: 6 December 2025
Symposium Dates: 28–29 January 2026

The symposium will be held at the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design (MOME) in Budapest and organized by the Centre for Photography. To reduce our environmental impact, we encourage and will only support travel by train or coach.

Read full Call for Papers: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeQ0CwFHNaL54W-62UYGISefCL6Scc7P4BBLDqHr6zdvV9T8A/viewform?pli=1