The Quiet Machine by David Claerbout at Fondazione MAST, Eyes To Fly With by Graciela Iturbide at FOMU, Planches Contact Festival, and Rubberneck by Farah Al Qasimi at François Ghebaly are among the photography events to visit next month.
Bologna, Italy / 29 October - 7 February 2027
Curated by Francesco Zanot, this comprehensive retrospective examines the intricate relationships between industry, technology, and nature through nine film installations – including two premieres – and a dozen drawings spanning MAST's galleries and grounds.
Transitioning from painting to digital media, Claerbout utilizes an advanced computational infrastructure of 3D modeling, animation, and generative AI to craft hyper-detailed, seamless visual flows where complex technology recedes into the background to prioritize meditative atmosphere over spectacle.
Central to the exhibition is Claerbout’s radical manipulation of time and duration, stretching narratives from hours to infinite real-time simulations where overt events dissolve into steady processes. Across works exploring physical labor, algorithmic computation, and organic growth, industrial frameworks and natural elements coexist under a shared principle of perpetual transformation.
Counterbalanced by intimate drawings that highlight direct manual mark-making, Claerbout’s luminous, slow-moving works act as "quiet machines" that resist ephemeral image consumption to leave a lasting resonance in the viewer's memory.
Antwerp, Belgium / 19 September - 17 January
Eyes to Fly With marks the first major Belgian retrospective dedicated to Mexican photographer Graciela Iturbide, surveying over half a century of her transformative practice. Drawn from one of her celebrated self-portraits, the title reflects Iturbide's approach to photography as an emancipatory pursuit capable of revealing new perspectives on both self and society.
Developed in close collaboration with the artist and curated by Sophia Greiff and Melissa Harris for the C/O Berlin Foundation, the exhibition brings together roughly 160 works, spanning her iconic black-and-white imagery, rare vintage and color prints, and contact sheets.
The retrospective deeply engages with themes of identity, ritual, spirituality, and cultural ephemerality. Key highlights include her celebrated portraits centering the autonomy and vital socioeconomic roles of indigenous Zapotec women in Oaxaca, as well as her White Fence series addressing ancestry, living conditions, and migration.
From sacrificial rites in La Matanza and portrayals of the Seri people to rarely shown series from India, Bangladesh, and the long-sealed bathroom of Frida Kahlo, Iturbide’s nuanced lens dismantles conventional gender roles and captures the enduring complexities of everyday human life.
Visit the exhibition before 17 January and read more on their website.
Amsterdam, Netherlands / 18 September - 20 January
In her first major solo exhibition outside China, Hailun Ma utilizes fashion photography as a sharp lens for social observation. Considered a leading voice among China’s new generation of image-makers, Ma focuses her camera on Xinjiang, capturing the everyday styles, gestures, and relationships of its youth, families, and multicultural communities.
Moving seamlessly between staged tableaux and spontaneous portraits, the works examine how culture is worn, lived, and continuously reimagined. By letting visual expression take precedence over direct explanation, Ma bridges local…
