Rene Matić wins the 2026 Deutsche Börse Photography Basis Prize

Gęsicka, born in Włocławek, Poland in 1984, was nominated for the e book Encyclopaedia, printed by BLOW UP PRESS in November 2024. Depicting faux entries initially inserted into reference books as a way to spot copyright violations, Gęsicka makes use of manipulated inventory images and AI-generated photographs to ask what’s actual, and what we’re ready to consider.

Mahmoodian, born in 1980 in Shiraz, Iran, was nominated for the exhibition One Hundred and Twenty Minutes, which was proven on the Bristol Photo Festival from 16 October – 17 November 2024. Installed in a former home house, this present included images, poetry, textual content, and drawing to discover the emotional and psychological imprints of exile. Working intently with 16 collaborators from 14 international locations, Mahmoodian explored recurring desires, reminiscence and identification.

“Dreams are personal,” Mahmoodian instructed BJP in a characteristic printed within the December 2024 problem. “When we are awake, we share moments together, but as soon as we close our eyes and we are asleep, we create a world which is absolutely private. You can let people come in or leave, and I love this life without borders. It is a response to the physical border which has been created by political leaders. We cannot change the circumstance, but we can change the perspective.”