CPB International Open Call – Edition 2 opens in Chennai on 15th Mar 2026 at VR Chennai and on 19th Mar 2026 at Avtar Foundation for the Arts.

Chennai Photo Biennale Foundation is back with its second edition of its international open call showcase powered by SIGMA and supported by VR Chennai and the Avtar Foundation for the Arts. Selected work reviewed by an esteemed international jury panel is being presented as two public exhibitions opening on:

15 March 2026, 12 pm at VR Chennai

19 March 2026, 5pm at Avtar Foundation for the Arts, MRC Nagar, Chennai The exhibitions are free and open to all and will remain open till 5th April 2026.

 

Key highlights of Edition 2 – CPB International Open Call

• Over 9400 photographs submitted across single image and photo stories categories
• Submissions from across 37 countries
• Over 100 photographers selected for the showcase

About the CPB International Photography Open Call

The CPB International Photography Open Call represents an opportunity for photographers and visual artists working with the medium of photography to present their creative vision and talent to public audiences in the coastal city of Chennai in South India. The open call initiated by the CPB Foundation as part of its previous Biennale edition is now cemented as an annual feature in the foundation’s programs offering an opportunity to present work across public spaces in Chennai to be viewed by more than 50,000 visitors.

Open to photographers and artists of any age from anywhere in the world, photographic work from any niche can be submitted to the open call that is reviewed by an international jury of curators, artists, and editors, providing participants with unparalleled visibility and global exposure. An open theme allows for work ranging from nature, portraits, documentary, still life, landscape photography and more to be submitted to the open call. Submissions are restricted to photographic or lens-based work, but can include combinations with other art forms such as performance, painting, audio, sculpture, literature and text.

“Photography and its presentation as art in accessible forms has always been at the heart of the Chennai Photo Biennale Foundation. Exhibitions across public spaces such as parks, beaches, libraries, heritage sites, train stations, malls, and galleries invite wider audiences to encounter photographic art, while fostering awareness of socio-cultural, environmental, and regional stories through creative expression.

– Varun Gupta, Founding Director, CPB Foundation.

“In recent years, Sigma has been expanding its role beyond that of a camera and lens manufacturer to actively support photography as an art form. Through initiatives such as its support for KG+ and the establishment of the Sigma Foundation in 2025, the company has been working closely with artists and supporting platforms that nurture emerging talent and encourage deeper engagement with photographic practice.

Guided by the belief that technology should serve the artist, Sigma’s growing involvement with festivals, publications, and artist-led initiatives reflects its commitment to fostering a vibrant global photography community. In this context, supporting the Chennai Photo Biennale’s International Open Call felt like a natural extension of this vision, aligning with Sigma’s continued efforts to champion artistic dialogue and provide meaningful platforms for photographers.”

 Mr Seshan A, SIGMA

 

Esteemed Jury for the second edition of the CPB international Open Call Submitted entries are being reviewed and selected by an incredible and diverse panel of jury members including:

Photo artist, Bharat Sikka (India)

Belfast Photo Founder, Michael Weir (UK)

Photographer & mentor, Karthik Rajagopal (India)

Photographer and mentor, APF, Vineet Vohra (india) Photographer and filmmaker, Avani Rai (India) Visual artist, Ashfika Rahman (Bangladesh)

Visual artist, Curator & Founder of JOJO Editions, Kaamna Patel (india)

Director of Education, International Centre of Photography, Per Gylfe (USA)

More details of the jury members can be found linked here. All Open Call details here.

Exhibiting Photo Artists

Photo Series Artist List – exhibiting at Avtar Foundation for the Arts, Chennai	City	Country
Anouchka Renaud ECK	Bagnolet KA	India
Swastik Pal	Kanjialpara	India
Jannan Kazmi	Srinagar	India
Andrea Salvucci	Macerata MC	Italy
John Trotter	Brooklyn, NY	USA
Shane Hynan	Carbury	Ireland
Jyoti Shrestha	Kathmandu	Nepal
Matteo Trevisan	Gradisca d’Isonzo	Italy
Oskar Alvarado	Barcelona	Spain
Matjaz Tancic	Ljubljana	Slovenia
Fiorella Baldisserri	Bologna	Italy
Pinki Sanyal	Kolkata	India
Eduardo Ortiz	Valparaiso	Chile
Sai Suren Kimidi	Visakhapatnam	India
David Lemort	Saint Pierre	Reunion
Barkat Mehra	Etchingham	UK

 

Ranita Roy	Howrah WB	India
Amit Machamasi	Bhaktapur	Nepal
Anthony Bourgeault	Montreal	Canada
Carolina Arantes Silva Moreira	Paris	France
Sugandha Garg	Mumbai	India
Ketan Purohit	Jodhpur	India
Annemarie Deckers	Agia Paraskevi	Greece
Stefanie Kulisch	Berlin	Germany
Peter Brandt	Cape Town	South Africa
Arka Sinha	Kolkata	India
Shubhadeep Mukherjee	Gurgaon	India
Stephanie Lee	6 Parry Walk	Singapore
Leah Gordon	London	UK
Gautam Mehta	Panchkula HR	India
Yash Sharma	Hyderabad TG	India
Mayya Kelova	Levallois – Perret	France
Single Image Artist List – Exhibiting at VR Chennai	City	Country
Aditya Raghunathan	Delhi	India
Aditya Sharma	Bhopal MP	India
Agha Siraj	Jacobabad Sindh	Pakistan
Akriti Sondhi	New Delhi	India

 

Amogh Thakur	Mumbai	India
Andrea Salvucci	Macerata MC	Italy
Anjan Das	Kolkata	India
Ankit Bakade	Chandrapur MH	India
Anuj Rawla	New Delhi	India
Anuska Chatterjee	Howrah WB	India
Aquib Ali Ansari	Jaipur	India
Arka Roy	Midnapore WB	India
Arthi Duraisamy	Kumbakonam	India
Arunabh Bhattacharjee	Ponda GA	India
Arvind Senji	Chennai	India
Balaji Gangadharan	Chennai TN	India
Balaji Natarajan	Chennai	India
Bettina Brunswig	Hamburg	Germany
Bithal Dattatreya	Chennai	India
Chaula Doshi	Ahmedabad	India
Christopher Jebadurai	Chennai	India
Debarshi Mukherjee	Kolkata	India
Deepak Kumbhar	Kolhapur	India
Dheemaan Garg	Guwahati AS	India
Dipak G	Avadi	India
Eli Mastaine	Imphal West MN	India

 

Fahim Sayed	Mumbai	India
Farah Sayyed	Merawoods	Singapore
Ganesh Vanare	Mumbai	India
Hayathi	Visakhapatnam AP	India
Indranil Basu Mallick	Pune MH	India
Jason Au	Sai Ying Pun	India
Joy Srivastava	Pondicherry	India
Komal Tarte	Pune	India
Manju Mohan	Bangalore KA	India
Mayukh Das	Kolkata	India
Mohamed Zunaid	Coimbatore	India
Mriganka Kalita	Dubai DU	UAE
Muhammed Shafi PP	Wayanad	India
Muralikrishnan Rajkumar	Puducherry PY	India
Nabyl Gasim		Maldives
Pinu Rahman	Dhaka	Bangladesh
Poonam Goenka	Gurgao HR	India
Raghav Sethi	Thane	India
Rajeev Anand	Mumbai	India
Rajesh Satankar	Mumbai	India
Rajkumar Koul	Mohali	India
Rakesh Jagtiani	New Delhi	India

 

Sagnik Chatterjee	Rijswijk	Netherlands
Sahil Jagasia	Mumbai MH	India
Samya Ghatak	Kolkata WB	India
Sanjeev Kumar	Bhadohi UP	India
Santanu Patra	Kanchrapara	India
Santosh S	Chennai TN	India
Shail Joshi	New York	USA
Shajin Nambiar	Bengaluru	India
Sophia Wong	Los Angeles CA	USA
Soumalya Dandapat	Kolkata WB	India
Soumayan Biswas	Hooghly	India
Souptik Majila	Kolkata WB	India
Souvik Roy	Mumbai MH	India
Sudeep Lal	New Delhi	India
Sudheer	Pattambi KL	India
Sundarkrishnan Pitchumani	Padur	India
Surajit Dutta	Kolkata WB	India
Swastik Mohanty	Bhubaneswar OR	India
Tarun Jindal	Ghaziabad	India
Thiruchitrambalam M	Chennai TN	India
Uday Narayanan	Noida	India
Uttara Joshi	Mumbai MH	India

 

Vedant Kulkarni	Mumbai MH	India
Vinay Panjwani	Ahmedabad	India
Vinit Gupta	New Delhi	India
Vishal Naveen	Chennai	India
Vivek Maran	Chennai	India
Vivek Mohan	Mumbai MH	India
Yashaswi Dugar	Kolkata	India
Yousuf Sarfaraz	Jamshedpur	India