Bali’s first-ever international photography festival will be coming to the island in less than a month. The FOTO Bali Festival will be held at Nuanu Creative City from 3rd June to 12th July 2026, bringing together some of the world’s most talented photographers. It promises to be one of the artistic highlights of the year.
FOTO Bali Festival is the island’s first international photography festival and will be presented by Nuanu Creative City.
The team behind the event has shared that FOTO Bali Festival has been “created as a meeting point for photographers, artists, and audiences to gather around stories told through images. The festival believes photography is not simply a record of reality, but a way of seeing, shaped by memory, identity, culture, and the quiet moments that define everyday life.”
The event was first launched in 2025 and was the first of its kind in Bali Province. Returning to Nuanu Creative City again this year, the event promises to be even bigger and better than its inaugural outing.
This year’s theme is ‘Afterimage’, and the exhibition has been curated by Kurniadi Widodo and Putu Sridinari. The festival received nearly 700 submissions from photographers from 80 countries. The festival will feature work from 36 selected artists who hail from 24 different countries.
In a press statement, Kelsang Dolma, Festival Director of FOTO Bali Festival, shared, “We want FOTO Bali Festival to open up a wider conversation between photographic practices from different contexts, without geographical or generational boundaries.”
Adding “The open call is central to that, allowing both emerging and established artists to enter the festival through the strength of their work and its connection to the festival’s theme. Having two curators is also important, as it brings multiple perspectives into the selection process and allows for a more layered engagement with the festival’s central.”
Kurniadi Widodo, Curator of FOTO Bali Festival, has shared, “The qualities and approaches reflected in these works align with what we envisioned when the theme was first introduced.” Adding “We aim to present practices that demonstrate both strong commitment and a diversity of visual languages within contemporary photography.”
The FOTO Bali Festival is presented in partnership with Nuanu Creative City and has the backing of the national tourism board, Wonderful Indonesia. Ni Made Ayu Marthini, Deputy for Marketing at the Ministry of Tourism, has shared, “Wonderful Indonesia supports initiatives that strengthen Indonesia’s creative ecosystem and cultural dialogue. FOTO Bali Festival 2026 represents how art, photography, and community can come together to create meaningful cultural conversations rooted in Bali.”
Putu Sridiniari, Curator of FOTO Bali Festival, shared, “In the context of Afterimage, photography does not conclude a moment—it continues to circulate and shape how we remember the world. The selected works reflect diverse approaches, yet share a common attentiveness to how images carry traces and influence our understanding of the present.”
The full program for the festival will be announced soon, but with more than 30 artists’ work to explore and more than 20 days of festival to fill, the program promises to be a jam-packed artistic affair.
More details about the festival and for updates about the program when it is announced, The Bali Sun readers should follow FOTO Bali Festival on Instagram and check out the event’s official website.
This is not the first time this week we here at The Bali Sun have reported on Nuanu Creative City. The 44-hectare creative hub in Tabanan Regency has received high praise this week from Indonesia’s Deputy Minister of Creative Economy Irene Umar, who highlighted the project as a source of inspiration for preserving Balinese culture while building a sustainable future for all.
Deputy Minister Umar told reporters, “We see Nuanu Creative City as more than just a physical area, but a tangible manifestation of the future of Indonesia’s creative economy.” She gave her backing to the development project, which includes artist hubs, a beach club, a school, and accommodation.
She said, “We are here to provide full support for the development of an area that combines immersive experiences with a commitment to sustainable living.”
Adding “I am proud to see the work of our nation’s children competing at the global level without abandoning their local identity. From multimedia to conservation at Magic Garden, everything is designed to improve the well-being of the community while protecting the earth.”
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