3rd EDITION 2024-2025

The third edition of the Daniele Tamagni Grant is organised by the Daniele Tamagni Foundation in partnership with The Market Photo Workshop and Africa Foto Fair.

THE PRIZE

The winner of the open call will receive a one years scholarship to attend the Photojournalism and Documentary Photography Programme (PDP) at The Market Photo Workshop, in Johannesburg ZA, from end January 2025 to early December 2025 and a monthly stipend to support local living expenses. This year, thanks to the new partnership with Africa Foto Fair, the winner will also have the chance to showcase the body of work developed during the scholarship at Africa Foto Fair 2025 (Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire).

THE JURY

Aïda Muluneh (Ethiopia/ Côte d’Ivoire), Artist, curator, founder of Africa Foto Fair and Addis Foto
Fest; Khona Dlamini (South Africa), Programmes and Project Manager at The Market Photo Workshop; Chiara Bardelli Nonino (Italy), Features director at Harper’s Bazaar Italia, independent curator; Marco Longari (Italy / South Africa), Photojournalist, AFP’s Chief Photographer; Peggy
Sue Amison (USA / Germany) Artistic Director at East Wing Doha, curator, writer; Bindi Vora (UK) Artist, Senior Curator at Autographs London; Christopher Udoh (Nigeria) Founder and Director of Anyen Iyak Foundation for Art and Culture Nigeria, curator, artist.

Ahmed Khirelsid wins the third edition of The Daniele Tamagni Grant. Khirelsid has been selected by an international jury from over 280 submissions from 63 countries worldwide, demonstrating the community’s interest has to the Daniele Tamagni Grant and the program in photojournalism and documentary photography at the Photo Market Workshop in Johannesburg.

Born in 2001 in Omdurman, Sudan, Ahmed Khirelsid is a photographer and visual storyteller who focuses on capturing the realities of life in his country. His journey into photography began during the Sudanese revolution. His project “Under Control” won him the 2024 Contemporary African Photography (CAP) Prize. His work has been exhibited in Ireland, Hamburg, Johannesburg, Khartoum and London.

AHMED KHIRELSID, “UNDER CONTROL” 2024

“Under Control” is a personal reflection on his experience of fleeing conflict in Khartoum. “On April 15, I woke up to the noise of my family in distress and many missed calls on my phone. War had broken out in Khartoum. Within hours, we heard artillery, realizing we were stuck in the middle of a battlefield. We had to leave. Death, violence, political and economic instability, upheaval, and doubt have become inherent to the Sudanese people in the last five years, from the revolution to the pandemic to the military coup in 2021. “”Under Control” is a personal project that documents my experience of being forced to leave my family home and my attempts to adapt to this new situation. Through this work, I try to explore and understand the psychological and emotional trauma received because of this war, as well as those around me… We fled to a village called Al-Hasaya, where my uncle offered us an abandoned house. We don’t know what the next step is. It is a time of waiting and uncertainty.”

The jury was impressed by the winner’s talent, his passion, and his skillful combination of artistic gaze and documentary content. For Aïda Muluneh, president of the jury, “Ahmed Khirelsid’s work is an abstraction of African realities, framed in the unique corners of his vision. As photographers, we inevitably become archivists of moments, whether we are capturing reality or creating our own universe. Ahmed’s black and white images carry weight, with layers that reveal the shadows of his unspoken language yet resonate deeply with us. It was clear that he wasn’t just taking photographs; his images are like poems, filled with questions and inner reflections.” Christopher Udoh added “I particularly like Ahmed Khirelsid’s work because of its childlike honesty. Each frame holds a different tension, blending hardcore documentary techniques with a more poetic and artistic delivery. When you see his work, you get a real sense of the complexity of the war in Sudan and the state of mind of the observer (Ahmed), who is very intimately connected to the space he is covering.”

SHORTLISTED CANDIDATES

The jury also highlighted the great quality of the projects of the other shortlisted candidates: Mathilde Mujanayi (RDC, based in the USA), Adedolapo Boluwatife (Nigeria), Andrea Fuca’ (Italy), Louis Roth (Germany) characterized by outstanding creativity, authenticity of the stories told or documented, and strong ethical values.