A photography festival is returning to Frome next month and will include photography from internationally acclaimed, national and regional artists, reflecting on stories of global and local justice and equality.
Photo|Frome will take place from 5th to 27th April, featuring 14 free exhibitions—both indoor and outdoor—along with talks, workshops, portfolio reviews, a pop-up portrait studio (Faces of Frome), curator tours, and more.
Following two successful editions, the festival team is preparing its most ambitious event yet, further cementing Frome’s reputation as a vibrant national hub for photography.
The festival’s central venue, Rook Lane Chapel, will host an exhibition by photographer Joss Barratt, featuring images taken while working on set with acclaimed director Ken Loach. This will be presented alongside documentary photographers who have independently explored similar social issues.
Co-founder of the festival, João Diniz Sanches, said, “There are major themes drawn from Loach’s films: colonialism and resistance, living conditions and the human spirit, refugees and the welfare state.
“The ‘constructed reality’ film stills aim to start a conversation with photographers who have covered the same themes in their own way. This includes documentary photography by Susan Meiselas, Nick Hedges, Tish Murtha, Jim Brogden, and Roland Ramanan, conceptual work by Paul Seawright, and interpretive work by Fast Forward: Women in Photography, curated by Anna Fox.”
Renowned photographer Susan Meiselas, who recently received the Outstanding Contribution to Photography award at the Sony World Photography Awards 2025, will also be showcasing her signature colour reportage work from Nicaragua.
In a special event, acclaimed director Ken Loach will speak with Susan Meiselas, joined by Frome resident Ash Khanidikar, a magazine editor and arts journalist, who will host a conversation with Ken, Susan, and Joss Barratt about the role of photography in portraying social issues—whether through fiction or journalism. João described it as an evening filled with fascinating insights, personal anecdotes, and sharp-witted exchanges from some of the best in their field.
Photo|Frome will again offer the international Open Photobook Award and the MPB Student Awards. This year, a new Open Call on the inEquality theme has received entries from across the world. The MPB Student Awards prizes include vouchers worth up to £500, and Photo|Frome is also offering a cash prize for local entries.
Further exhibitions will take different creative approaches to the inEquality theme. Joanne Coates will showcase work exploring rurality, hidden histories, and income-based inequalities. Valentina Sinis will present Were Afghan Women to Unveil Their Tales, while Sujata Setia’s A Thousand Cuts and Sarah Palmer’s Wish You Were Here will offer their own interpretations of social inequalities. Evgeniya Strygina’s Home from Home and Tim Smith’s In the World but Not of It will also be on display.
Students from Falmouth University, Boomsatsuma in Bristol, and Frome College will be exhibiting their work, along with the local collective Frome Wessex Photographic.
For more information about the festival and how to attend, visit the website https://photofrome.org/
