Photography fans can enjoy 2020’s Auckland Festival of Photography on Pop Up TV (Freeview Channel 200) or online at www.photographyfestival.org.nz from May 27 to June 15.

“AFP will keep working with artists, photographers and galleries in the coming weeks to ensure that everything planned to present in a public exhibition space can now be offered on air or online,” says AFP director Julia Durkin.

In another first, AFP 2020 is teaming up with the Sydney’s Head On Photo Fest so that audiences on both sides of the Tasman can see top quality international work from the two festivals.

“AFP’s core mission is to present photography to the public so we are delighted to announce our 2020 programme will be broadcast on Freeview each night from 8pm on Pop Up TV,” says Ms Durkin.

“Innovation is necessary to present the arts, cultural and community benefits of the festival, given the current health crisis,” Ms Durkin says. “We are proud of what’s on offer, the collaboration with our Asia Pacific Photoforum partner organisation, Head On, and confident that our audiences will be able to readily access it through this year festival.”

AFP has been working for the past month with supporters, photographers, galleries, stakeholders, Korida’s Pop Up TV and Head On Photo Festival to organise a contingency AFP 2020. This contingency provides certainty for everyone despite unknowns about if public exhibitions and events will be permitted by late May. It will ensure the AFP programme will be accessible on a digital platform that showcase outstanding national and international photography and provides activities that audiences can engage and interact with. “We are optimistic that the more than 50 venues involved in 2020’s festival will be ready to show their exhibitions on Kordia’s Pop Up TV or in web presentations linked to the festival website as needed or on our You Tube channel,” Ms Durkin says.

Highlights of 2020’s festival include Unseen, Core and Satellite exhibitions, the Annual Commission 2020 artists and Alex Mao Youth Photography award, and Nikon Auckland Photo Day on June 6. Entries for all three Awards will be online. AFP 2020 will also offer its fourth annual cash award, with a ‘Late Harvest’ theme by winesearcher.com, for all presenting exhibition artists. Details of AFP’s 2020 programme, including ‘Talking Culture by Leica’ will be released in late April, talks to be webcast and public invited to join the conversation using Zoom.

Media release, March 31 2020 1/1