- The strong turnout cements the prize’s standing and confirms it as one of Spain’s leading platforms for promoting contemporary photographic talent
- This edition sees stronger international participation
- The shortlisted entries will be announced during the week of 11 May 2026
- The winners will receive €12,000, €8,000 and €5,000 respectively
Entries for the 19th ENAIRE Foundation Photography Awards ran from 17 March to 13 April 2026. The competition, organised by ENAIRE’s cultural arm the ENAIRE Foundation, received 1,268 photographs from 469 artists. International participation has grown notably this year, with 38 Spain-based artists from 20 countries taking part.
Such a strong response confirms the award’s growing standing in Spanish culture. The diversity of the entries—in technique, concept and theme—demonstrates the vitality of photography and its power to engage with contemporary social issues.
With the online submission period closed, the jury has begun reviewing the entries to select 30 artists for the print round.
The ENAIRE Foundation will announce the 30 shortlisted entries in the week of 11 May 2026, via its website and social media.
The jury will meet on 10 June to choose the three winning entries and the fifteen finalists from the 30 shortlisted works—one of which will receive the PHotoESPAÑA Special Mention.
The three winners receive €12,000, €8,000 and €5,000 respectively. Beyond the cash prizes, the award itself can give a major boost to the winners’ careers.
Winners and finalists also feature in the Foundation’s annual group exhibition, held as part of PHotoESPAÑA. This year’s exhibition opens in June at the Naves de Gamazo Arts Centre in Santander, as part of PHotoESPAÑA Santander 2026.
Nearly 5,000 artists have entered since the award began
Entries to the ENAIRE Foundation Photography Awards have grown steadily since the first edition in 2005. That first edition was a one-off, held to mark the Foundation’s tenth anniversary.
Over a hundred artists entered. Such a strong response prompted the Foundation to make the award a biennial event.
The 2007 and 2009 editions far surpassed expectations, both in entrants and in photographs submitted. From 2010 onwards, the prize became a permanent fixture of the annual ENAIRE Foundation Awards.
Over nineteen editions, the prize has drawn 4,830 artists and 10,949 photographs. The prize is drawing more international artists: French photographer Françoise Vanneraud won third prize in 2025, and Mexican photographer Cristóbal Ascencio took third in 2023.
Under the award rules, the three winning photographs each year enter the ENAIRE Contemporary Art Collection—a significant career milestone for the winners and a tangible expression of the Foundation’s commitment to photography.
This made clear that the Foundation’s investment in photography was not a one-off tied to a particular anniversary, but a lasting commitment to placing photography alongside more traditional disciplines such as painting, sculpture and printmaking. As a result, 55 photographs have entered the ENAIRE Collection since the prize was launched in 2005.
About ENAIRE Foundation
Is a cultural institution of the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility that, in addition to managing, preserving and exhibiting the ENAIRE Collection of Contemporary Art, engages in a comprehensive annual programme of activities that focus on aeronautical art and culture. Notably, it is one of the institutions that currently provides the most support to photography through its annual prizes - which have become a benchmark for professional photographers - and by hosting exhibits.
It is the only foundation in Spain that combines the two seemingly disparate themes of art and aeronautical culture, bringing them together by undertaking a programme of activities that promote the study, research, knowledge and dissemination of aeronautical culture, integrating history and modernity to raise awareness of the world of aviation in our country.
The Naves de Gamazo are the first permanent home of the ENAIRE Collection of Contemporary Art, an example of collaboration between government agencies that was made possible thanks to the partnership and joint efforts of the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, the Government of Cantabria, through the Office for Culture, Tourism and Sport, and the Port Authority of Santander, which share the operating expenses of the centre in order to ensure the present and future viability of this cultural project.
ENAIRE Foundation is implementing digital museum resources to boost the democratisation of art and make it accessible from anywhere in the world. These new museum resources are now available on the Foundation's website.
About ENAIRE
ENAIRE is the air navigation service provider in Spain.
As a company of the Ministry of Sustainable Transport and Mobility, it provides air traffic control services during the en route and approach phases of all flights to and from Spain and overflights. In addition, it manages communications, navigation and surveillance services from ENAIRE in the airspace and the entire AENA airport network in Spain and provides aerodrome air traffic control services in 21 airports, including the busiest.
ENAIRE is the fourth largest European air navigation service provider, and it is a member of international partnerships A6 Alliance, SESAR (Single European Sky ATM Research) Joint Undertaking, SESAR Deployment Manager, iTEC, CANSO (Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation) and collaborates closely with ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization).
ENAIRE has obtained the highest rating in the key performance indicator for air safety at European scale for six consecutive years, the last five with the maximum possible score of 100%. It has also been awarded the EFQM 600 Seal for its safe, efficient, innovative and sustainable management of air navigation services.