Latin American Foto Festival 2026

Curators Michael Kamber and Alexa Pacheco are masters of cohesion, bringing together works from artists including a special homage to the late Ed Alvarez, Cristian Ochoa, Alejandra Orosco, Emilio Espejel, and the Argentinian Archivo de la Memoria Trans. Beneath the romantic and dramatic photographs lie sociopolitical realities that shape individual experience. As the relationship between the United States and the rest of America grows more tumultuous, LAFF navigates the relationship between the two at a cultural midpoint, investigating internal and global affairs. Thematic and artistic tones vary: from photos of obscured darkness and harsh grey-scale turmoil to golden light and washes of the pastels of early-morning sky.  

Chris Perez explores Dominican heritage in the aptly-named project Dominican, a series of photographs and self-portraits from trips to the island. Nights are rich in jewel-tones of faith and community, and days comfortably washed out the way the sun eventually bleaches bright paint. Amidst the natural beauty, Perez wonders at his own presence, recounting a diasporic experience as a measured balance between isolation and discovery. Caio Vilela’s Football Without Borders captures soccer’s universality, presenting the sport as a shared language. Whether being played by kids or adults, in the Mayan citadel of Tikal, Guatemala or the striking cavernous range of Chapada Diamantina in Bahia, Brazil, soccer is more than a game. In a plethora of settings, Vilela captures the joy of soccer at its fullest: smiles, bright colours, and a beat-up ball that has travelled the world to create a respected global ritual. 

Additionally, the community-based arts approach of the Bronx Documentary Center pays homage to the borough’s own Caribbean and Latin-American community. With free admission, bilingual tours, and the exhibition’s concluding block party, the centre’s ideals are not just a photographic lens, but an inseparable and innate part of the LAFF experience.