VISIO MENTIS 2027 | THE JOURNEY
INTERNATIONAL OPEN CALL
We are all on a journey.
Not necessarily towards a place.
The journey begins the moment we enter the world. We move through people, places, relationships, belonging and distance. We encounter harmony and conflict, humanity and inhumanity, light and shadow.
We change, and we are changed.
Sometimes we travel thousands of miles. At other times, the longest journey takes place without us ever leaving where we are.
From this idea comes VISIO MENTIS 2027 — THE JOURNEY, the international curatorial project that will accompany Visio Mentis throughout 2027.
THE JOURNEY
A journey does not necessarily mean moving from one place to another.
It can be inward or collective, real or symbolic. It can unfold through a city, a landscape, a community, the body or memory.
It can speak of departure or the choice to stay. Of transformation, searching, loss, encounter or return.
Along the way, we encounter what resembles us and what feels unfamiliar. We stop, set off again, change direction.
And even when we believe we are standing still, something within us or around us continues to move.
THE JOURNEY grows out of this universal condition: to be in the world is to move through it.
Photography can preserve a fragment of that passage.
THE JOURNEY IS NOT A SINGLE EVENT
VISIO MENTIS 2027 — THE JOURNEY is a curatorial project that will unfold throughout 2027 through a series of editorial and exhibition experiences.
The book and the exhibitions are independent projects: the book is not an exhibition catalogue. They are different ways of interpreting the same curatorial vision and may involve different photographers and bodies of work.
You can take part in the book, the exhibition, or both.
THE JOURNEY · THE BOOK
The beginning of the journey
Following the experience of GAZE, Visio Mentis opens a new chapter in its editorial journey. THE JOURNEY marks the beginning of the 2027 project, bringing together photographers from different countries and backgrounds around a shared reflection on the idea of the journey.
We are not looking for a single definition. We are looking for interpretations. The selected photographs will become part of a collective visual narrative shaped through the curatorial vision of Visio Mentis.
We are not looking for travel photography. We are looking for your journey.
WHO CAN APPLY
The call is open to photographers of all nationalities and is not limited to any specific photographic genre. Street, documentary, portraiture, landscape, social, intimate, conceptual and nature photography, as well as other forms of photographic research, are all welcome.
There is no need to produce new photographs. You may submit an existing project, images from your archive, or work from an ongoing body of research.
WHAT TO SUBMIT
2 photographs from the same project or belonging to a coherent body of work, accompanied by a short description of one or two paragraphs explaining the journey represented by those images.
For the selection process, JPG, JPEG or PNG files are sufficient, with a maximum long edge of 2000 px and a maximum file size of 2 MB, without signatures, watermarks or logos. High-resolution files will only be requested from selected photographers.
CURATORIAL SELECTION
All submissions will be reviewed by Visio Mentis based on photographic quality, the coherence of the work and its relationship to the theme. Applying is free of charge and does not automatically guarantee publication.
Only selected photographers will be invited to confirm their participation and provide the materials required for publication.
THE BOOK
VISIO MENTIS 2027 — THE JOURNEY will be developed as a cohesive editorial project. The selection and sequencing of the photographs, the relationship between images and texts, and the narrative structure of the book will be curated by Visio Mentis on the basis of the selected works.
The book will be published by Visio Mentis Editions, with an ISBN, in accordance with legal deposit requirements, and distributed through Amazon and other planned publishing channels.
PARTICIPATION
Applying is free of charge. A participation fee of €90 will only be requested from selected photographers who choose to confirm their participation.
The fee includes editorial curation, development of the photographer’s work within the book, editorial preparation of the text dedicated to the photographer, graphic design and layout, publication with ISBN, legal deposit, distribution, and one personal copy of the printed book. Only shipping costs will be borne by the photographer.
DEADLINE
15 NOVEMBER 2026
APPLY FOR THE BOOK
THE JOURNEY · THE EXHIBITION
The journey takes shape in space
In March 2027, THE JOURNEY will continue with the first exhibition of the annual project. The exhibition will feature its own selection of photographers and works, independently of those included in the book.
We are looking for work that explores the journey through its personal, social, inner, geographical or symbolic dimensions. Not necessarily photographs made while travelling, but images capable of expressing what it means to move through the world.
We are not looking for travel photography. We are looking for your journey.
WHO CAN APPLY
The call is open to photographers of all nationalities. Participation in the book is not required to apply for the exhibition, and selection for the book does not automatically imply participation in the exhibition.
You may submit an existing project, an ongoing body of work, or a new project developed around the vision of THE JOURNEY.
THE EXHIBITION PROJECT
Each selected photographer will be represented by 6 photographs, produced directly on 5 mm Forex panels.
The six images may be horizontal, vertical or square, provided that they all share the same format and orientation. A square format is recommended, but not required.
CURATORIAL SELECTION
Applications will be reviewed by Visio Mentis based on the quality and coherence of the project and its ability to engage with the curatorial vision of THE JOURNEY.
Selected photographers will be contacted directly and will receive full information regarding participation and organisational details.
HOW TO APPLY
At this initial stage, you are not required to submit any photographs.
Complete the form to express your interest in taking part in the VISIO MENTIS 2027 — THE JOURNEY exhibition. If you have a website, online portfolio or photography profile, you can provide a link so that we can become familiar with your work.
Selected photographers will then be contacted by Visio Mentis to discuss the project in greater depth and define the selection of 6 photographs for the exhibition.
DEADLINE
22 NOVEMBER 2026
APPLY FOR THE EXHIBITION
THE JOURNEY CONTINUES
The book and the March exhibition mark the beginning of VISIO MENTIS 2027 — THE JOURNEY.
Throughout 2027, the project may continue to unfold through further exhibitions and editorial initiatives, each shaped in relation to its location, the available spaces, the photographers involved and its specific curatorial vision.
Each stage will retain its own identity and its own selection of works and photographers, while remaining part of the same journey.
New stages of THE JOURNEY will be announced progressively throughout 2027.
VISIO MENTIS 2027 — THE JOURNEY
Not every journey has a destination.
Some take us far away, others bring us back.
Others still unfold without us ever leaving where we are.
But every journey passes through something.
And something remains after we have passed through.
Curated by Marcello Pitardi
Visio Mentis Editions