Landmark Exhibition of Philippine Photography Opens in Frankfurt, Ahead of Philippines’ Guest of Honour Role at Frankfurt Book Fair

New Beginnings: Landmark Exhibition of Philippine Photography Opens in Frankfurt, Ahead of Philippines’ Guest of Honour Role at Frankfurt Book Fair 

Guests on the New Beginnings opening view works by MM Yu, and different Filipino photographers 

FRANKFURT 03 October 2025 — New Beginnings: Philippine Photographic Art opened on 27 September 2025 on the Fotografie Forum Frankfurt (FFF), bringing collectively a various and pressing physique of labor from up to date Filipino photographers. From documentary pictures to conceptualist artwork, from the lives of indigenous communities to intimate portrayals of each day resilience, the exhibition presents a large spectrum of tales of battle, survival, and pleasure. 

“This is, today, the most significant exhibition of Philippine photography in Germany and outside of the Philippines,” famous curator Patrick Flores. “These artists are not only photographers, but also painters, poets, cinematographers, and cultural workers.” Flores emphasised that the exhibition is each a celebration of inventive excellence and a mirrored image of the Philippines’ participation as Guest of Honour on the Frankfurt Book Fair 2025. 

The present was realized via shut collaboration between the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and Fotografie Forum Frankfurt, and is a part of the Philippines Guest of Honour cultural program at this 12 months’s Frankfurt Book Fair. 

Curated by Patrick Flores, Andrea Horvay, and Celina Lunsford, New Beginnings options works by Nana Buxani, Xyza Cruz Bacani, Tommy Hafalla, Gina Osterloh, Wawi Navarroza, Augustine Paredes, Veejay Villafranca, and MM Yu. Co-curators launched the exhibition, underscoring the big selection of practices represented—from staged photo-tableaux and long-term documentary tasks to large-scale installations and explorations of id, spirituality, surroundings, and belonging. 

Paredes, the youngest collaborating photographer, mirrored on the importance of being included alongside established figures: “These are people I looked up to, but also storytellers whose work matters in many different ways. The Philippines is made up of more than 7,000 islands, and there is no single way to tell a Filipino story. This exhibition shows narratives we often do not see, or only encounter at the margins. It’s important to share them, because there is no one way to express what it means to be Filipino.” 

Consul General Marie Yvette Banzon Abalos emphasised, “Our Guest of Honour participation carries with it the responsibility and the honor of presenting the breadth and depth of Philippine creativity, not only through our literary works but across the full spectrum of artistic expression. New Beginnings highlights photography as a vital part of the larger Filipino narrative, and stands alongside literature, film, music, and other creative forms. Together, these mediums help us tell you the story of who we are as a people through these layered, interconnected ways of seeing.” 

New Beginnings is open to the general public at Fotografie Forum Frankfurt till 11 January 2026. END 

Consul General Abalos, Photographer and Artist Nana Buxani, and exhibit curator Patrick Flores.

Senator Loren Legarda, the visionary behind the Philippines’ participation as Guest of Honour on this 12 months’s Frankfurt Book Fair, delivered remarks through video message.

Consul General Abalos and Patrick Flores additionally shared messages through the opening.

Augustine Paredes, the youngest photographer collaborating within the exhibition.

Andrea Horvay, co-curator of the exhibition.

For extra info, go to or https://www.facebook.com/PHinFrankfurt/.