FORMAT27

FORMAT27 explores the theme of PLAY.

From its origins, photography has been driven by experimentation - trial, error, and a desire to capture the world as we see it. From early processes to contemporary practices, the medium has evolved through playful exploration.

PLAY sits at the core of creativity. It can be joyful, curious, disruptive, provocative, or subversive. FORMAT27 invites broad interpretations: from camera experimentation and image-making technologies to sport, performance, truth, politics, and the freedom (or restriction) of play.

Collaboration - with people, nature, or technology - extends this idea further. As AI reshapes photography, questions around authorship and meaning intensify, while a renewed interest in analogue and sustainable practices reflects a desire for the tactile and real.

PLAY is both method and mindset. It enables risk, innovation, and new ways of seeing. Across the festival, PLAY will emerge through experimentation, improvisation, humour, and participation - challenging power, identity, and the politics of images.