Medphoto, the inaugural Mediterranean Photography Festival, will be taking place in the Summer of 2016 in Rethymno, on the island of Crete, Greece. Medphoto extends an invitation to the global photographic community to participate in this dynamic artistic project, designed to be an annual lens-based arts celebration. By bringing together multiple cultural partners across Europe and the Mediterranean region, we hope to foster and sustain a vivid community of artists and to promote meaningful social dialogue.

Crete is located at a crossroads of major geopolitical importance. At the center of the Mediterranean region, the island constitutes a gateway to the three continents of Europe, Africa and Asia. Upholding the status of the periphery, the island of Crete also highlights the meaning of geographical and cultural borders, a focal point of the festival’s sensibility and exploration. In addition, the current refugee crisis has pushed the meaning of identity and dislocation to the forefront. As a reaction to the dire reality of our times, the festival’s theme this year will be “Borders / Crossroads.”

MedPhoto will also explore the situation in crisis-stricken Greece, as well as present more symbolic, subjective and existential ideas of boundaries. Medphoto will host and organise exhibitions, presentations, workshops, publications, open discussions, an international photography prize (in effect for the first time in Greece) and various other events engaging the local community as well as international audiences.