The Rotary Club Nuenen is calling for entries to the Vincent van Gogh Photo Award 2027, on the theme, ‘Spirit of light’ (in the eyes of van Gogh).
The Vincent van Gogh Photo Award brings together (amateur and professional) photographers from every corner of the globe.
The best three works in each of the competition categories (Vincent van Gogh Photo Award and Student Award) will be awarded with monetary prizes. Your work will also be seen by an international audience of peers, collectors and art enthusiasts who appreciate serious photography. From 3 September 2027 to 24 September 2027, the nominated photos will be exhibited in the public park in the center of Nuenen.
Photographers are challenged to submit their most inspiring and innovative images.
Details about The Spirit of Light theme are available on the official website.
Photography begins with light. The very word itself comes from the Greek phōs (light) and graphé (writing): writing with light. Every photograph, whether captured in a studio or in the open landscape, is ultimately a conversation between light and the photographer. Without light, there is no image—only darkness waiting for meaning.
But light is more than a technical necessity. It carries character, emotion, and presence. Light has a spirit.
The sun paints the world with endless variation: the softness of dawn, the clarity of midday, the warm glow of evening. A cloudy sky diffuses light into a gentle veil, while a low winter sun carves long shadows across the land. Each moment offers a different voice, a different mood waiting to be translated into an image.
Artificial light tells its own story. The sudden energy of flash can freeze a fleeting gesture, reveal hidden textures, or transform darkness into drama. In the studio, light becomes sculptural—shaped, softened, directed. Photographers become architects of illumination, building atmosphere and depth through careful placement and timing.
The Vincent Van Gogh Photo Award competition is organized every two years, as an activity of Stichting Service Project Rotary Nuenen (RSIN: 8162 91 925).
More than 1,000 photographers from more than 80 countries participated in the 2025 edition.
Please check the official website for further information.
Vincent van Gogh Photo Award 2027 – Submission Fees
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Vincent van Gogh Photo Award
- 1 Photo: €18
- 2 Photos: €30
- 3 Photos: €42
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Student Award
- 1 Photo: €10
- 2 Photos: €15
- 3 Photos: €20
A 20% ‘Early bird’ discount applies from 1 March 2026 until 30 September 2026.