LIMINAL
EXHIBITIONS | WORKSHOPS | CONFERENCES | PROJECTIONS
6th – 29th March 2026
Mantua, various locations
PRESS RELEASE NO. 2
Dec. 1st 2025
Now in its fourth edition, the International Biennale of Female Photography of Mantua (BFFMantova) will open on March 6th 2026, confirming itself as a unique event on the world scene. For a month, the Lombard city will become an international showcase that will give space to important artists, some of whom are still little known in our country.
The event, promoted by the La Papessa Association with the patronage of the Lombardy Region, the Province and the Municipality of Mantua, will be directed, as in previous editions, by Alessia Locatelli. This year the BFF team has chosen the title “Liminal”, a term that embraces multiple, timely and fascinating meanings.
“Liminal” is the threshold, the undefined space that precedes the arrival at a destination. A limbo to cross to reach a close, but not yet fully outlined, finish line. In this transitional phase, the rules that had been considered valid until then may lose their strength. Those who experience this ambiguous dimension are confronted with uncertainty and disorientation, aware that while the past is already fixed, the present is shifting beneath their feet and the future appears more nebulous than ever, lacking any predictable destination. The only certainty is that a profound process of change is underway, one capable of shaking the very foundations of normality and established order: at times opening up to visions of a bright future, at others bringing back to light dormant darkness stirring in the depths of the world. It is a time when everything is called into question and transformations accelerate, for better or worse.
The International Biennale of Female Photography has always paid special attention to major social and geopolitical issues. These include education, class inequalities, the consequences of migration — which involve the loss of land, economic resources and civil liberties — up to the dynamics of neo-colonialism.
The 2026 edition follows the same format as the previous ones, with main exhibitions by Italian and international photographers: Nadia Bseiso (Jordan) Infertile Crescent, Mackenzie Calle (USA) The Gay Space Agency, Lisa Elmaleh (USA) Tierra Prometida, Julia Fullerton-Batten (Germany) Contortion, Lee Grant (Australia) Ancestral Constellations, Pia Paulina Guilmoth (USA) Flowers Drink the River, Keerthana Kunnath (India) Not What You Saw, Barbara Peacock (USA) American Bedroom, Gaia Squarci (Italy) The Cooling Solution (research by the ENERGYA team, curated by Kublaiklan and coordinated by Elementsix), Abbie Trayler-Smith (United Kingdom) The Big O and Kiss it! and an archival exhibition titled Shifting the Focus that reinterprets the revolutionary work of a pioneer of American photography, Imogen Cunningham (Portland 1883 – San Francisco, 1976). There are numerous other initiatives, including an Open Call for an Off Circuit, portfolio readings, workshops, conferences and educational workshops for children.
The venues designated for the exhibitions are Casa di Rigoletto, Casa del Mantegna, Galleria Disegno, Spazio Arrivabene2 and Casa del Pittore.
La Papessa Cultural Association | lapapessa.org
It promotes photographic culture, starting from the city of Mantua, where it was born. The project originates from an idea by Anna Volpi (President) and Chiara Maretti (Vice President), both photographers. The symbol representing the association is the figure of “La Papessa” (The Popess): in the Tarot, a woman of both spiritual and temporal power, the one who imparts knowledge. We are a group of artists, photographers, visual communication experts, but also people passionate about art and culture in general, united by the desire to create new realities and opportunities in the world of photography.
INFORMATION
Biennale della Fotografia Femminile
LIMINAL
6th – 29th March 2026, Mantua (various locations)
TICKET OFFICE
Casa del Mantegna – Via G. Acerbi, 47
Full ticket: €16
Reduced ticket (under 26 and over 65) €13
La Papessa Members: €12
CRAL members Bondioli-Pavesi, Irfoss, Fotografica aps, Frammenti di Fotografia, La Ghiacciaia, Fotocineclub Mantova, Fiaf, Topis aps: €14
Families: €12.50 per person (4 people: 2 adults and 2 under 18)
Free: up to 12 years and for visitors with disabilities and their accompanying persons
OPENING HOURS
Casa del Mantegna, Via G. Acerbi, 47: from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Casa di Rigoletto, Piazza Sordello, 23: from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Galleria Disegno, Via G. Mazzini, 34: from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Casa del Pittore, Corso Garibaldi, 46: from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Spazio Arrivabene 2, Via G. Arrivabene, 2: from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Exhibits open every Saturday and Sunday of March: 7th, 8th, 14th, 15th, 21st, 22nd, 28th, 29th
