alisamartynova33@gmail.com
Alisa Martynova (born in 1994) is an award-winning artist and documentary photographer, currently based in Florence, Italy. Situated at the intersection of documentary photography, contemporary art and long-term visual research, her practice explores issues of identity, migration and human perception, as well as the evolving relationships between technology, memory and narrative.
After studying foreign languages in her home country, she graduated in 2019 from the professional photography course at the Fondazione Studio Marangoni in Florence.
Her work has received international recognition in the fields of photography and contemporary art. In 2025, she was selected as one of 222 emerging artists supported by Exibart and was awarded the Strategia Fotografia grant from the Italian Ministry of Culture to develop her long-term project ANIMA, through research and production activities carried out at Ars Electronica (Austria) and FACT Liverpool (United Kingdom). The project also received the Beyond Future Art Prize 2025 in Hong Kong.
She has received the Canon Young Photographers Award (2019), the World Press Photo Award in the Portrait Series category (2021), the Korridor Prize for Documentary Photography in Innsbruck (2021), the UNSTUCK Award from the Magenta Foundation (2022), the LensCulture Emerging Talent Award (2023) and the Royal Photographic Society Documentary Photography Award (2023). She was also a finalist for the Premio Romano Cagnoni (2024), the CAP Centre for African Photography Award (2023), the Aftermath Grant (2022) and the PHmuseum Women Photographers Scholarship (2019). Her work has been shortlisted three times for the Leica Oskar Barnack Newcomers Award (2020, 2022 and 2023).
She has taken part in numerous international artist residencies, including Planches Contact (2021), Villa Pérochon (2023–2024), Culture Moves Europe + Hangar Photo Centre (2024) and PhotoXenia (2024), where she has developed narrative, contextual and multimedia approaches to photography.
Her works have been exhibited at international festivals and institutions such as the Lagos Photo Festival, Photo Brussels, Fotografia Europea, Cortona On The Move, Encontros da Imagem, Planches Contact, Festival Photo La Gacilly, the Italian Cultural Institute in Addis Ababa, Fisheye Gallery, Leica Galleries (Milan, Rome, Florence and Bologna), Kuala Lumpur Exposure+ Festival, Helsinki Photography Festival, St John’s College, Oxford, and The Mosaic Rooms.
Her work has been published in Internazionale, D Repubblica, Leica Fotografie International, Fisheye Magazine and 20er Magazine.
Exhibitions
2026 XR reality, Mozarteum University Salzburg, Dissonant Stereoscopy, Salzburg, Austria
2026 Ars Electronica festival, Dissonant stereoscopy, Linz, Austria
2026 Fotofestiwal, ANIMA, Lodz, Poland
2026 Fotografia Europea, ANIMA, Reggio Emilia, Italy
2026 Fotofestiwal, ANIMA, solo exhibition, Lodz, Poland
2026 Red Lab gallery, ANIMA, solo exhibition, Milan, Italy
2026 Marignana Arte, ANIMA, Venezia, Italy
2025 Lagos Photo Festival, Wall of eyes, solo exhibition, Lagos, Nigeria
2025 Phos gallery, Nowhere Near, Turin, Italy
2025 Arte in Nuvola, ANIMA, Rome, Italy
2025 Collateral Maris, Nowhere Near, solo exhibition, Vieste, Italy
2025 Phair, ANIMA, Turin, Italy
2025 Hangar Photo Center, ANIMA, Brussels, Belgium
2025 Royal Photographic Society, Nowhere Near, Bristol, United Kingdom
2024 Mosaic Room, High fire in the forest’s heart, solo exhibition, Vevey, Switzerland
2024 Oxford St. John's College, Nowhere Near, Oxford, the UK
2024 Mosaic Room, High fire in the forest’s heart, Vevey, Switzerland
2024 Villa Perochon, ANIMA, Niort, France
2024 Out of frame, Nowhere Near, Géopolis, Brussels, Belgium
2023 Out of frame, Nowhere Near, Galeria Nueva, Madrid, Spai
2023 OD photo prize exhibition, London, the UK
2023 (Un)Settled - migration stories in the 21st century by World Press Photo foundation, Nowhere Near, MMAG Foundation, Amman, Jordan
2023 Exposure + photography festival, Nowhere Near, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
2023 Helsinki photography festival, Nowhere Near, Helsinki, Finland
2023 La Gacilly photography festival, Nowhere Near, Baden, Austria
2023 Out of frame, Nowhere Near, Villa Altieri, Rome, Italy
2022 Korridor – Preis für Dokumentarfotografie, Nowhere Near, solo show, Reich für die Insel, Innsbruck, Austria
2022 Leica Gallerie Milano, Questo mare è pieno di voci, questo cielo è pieno di visioni, group show, Milano, Italy
2022 Portici public exhibition, via Vittorio Emmanuele II, Nowhere Near, group exhibition, Torino, Italy
2022 Fisheye gallery, Nowhere Near, group show, Paris, France
2022 In-Cadaques, Nowhere Near, group show, Cadaques, Spain
2022 La Gacilly photography festival, prix Nouvelles écritures de la photographie environnementale, Nowhere Near, group show, La Gacilly, France
2022 (Un)Settled - migration stories in the 21st century by World Press Photo foundation, Nowhere Near, Novi Sad Liberty Square, group show, Novi Sad, Serbia
2022 Eyes on Tomorrow, Nowhere Near, Italian Culture Institute, group show, Addis Abeba, Ethiopia
2021 Casa dos Cubos, Nowhere Near, group show, Tomar, Portugal
2021 Encontros da Imagem, Nowhere Near, solo show, Braga, Portugal
2021 Planches Contact, Tremplin Jeunes Talents, artist -in-residency program, Where the sons of eternity singing, group show, Deauville, France
2021 Giovane Fotografia Italiana, Cortona on the Move, Nowhere Near, group show, Cortona, Italy
2021 Giovane Fotografia Italiana, Fotografia Europea, Nowhere Near, group show, Reggio Emilia, Italy
2021 World Press Photo, Nowhere Near, group show, worldwide exhibitions
2021 Istituto degli innocenti, Alien Life Form, Dis-connessi, group show, Florence, Italy
2021 Murate Art District, I guess this river never knew, RIVA, group show, Florence, Italy
2021 The World Within, Photo Brussels 05, Sleeping Pill, Hangar gallery, group show, Brussels, Belgium
2019 PH museum Women Photographers Grant, Nowhere Near, PhotoVogue, group show, Milano, Italy
2019 Cortona On the Move, Premio Canon Young Photographers, Nowhere Near, group show, Cortona, Italy
2019 Les Rencontres d’Arles, Nowhere Near, opening night projection, group show, Arles, France
2019 Blob art gallery, Nowhere Near, Premio Combat, group show, Livorno, Italy
2017 Leica Store Florence, Shared environment, projection, Florence, Italy
Awards
2025 Strategia Fotografia grant, Italian Ministry of Culture (residency at Ars Electronica and FACT), winner
2025 Eneganart prize, Palazzo Strozzi, ANIMA, shortlisted
2025 Beyond Future Art, Hong Kong, winner
2025 PhotoVogue Women on Women, shortlisted
2024 Culture Moves Europe, Individual mobility, winner
2024 Intergalactica book award, Nowhere Near, finalist
2024 Romano Cagnoni Award, Nowhere Near, finalist
2024 Belfast photography festival, Nowhere Near, highly recommended by the jury
2023 Royal Photographic Society Documentary Awards, winner
2023 Lensculture Emerging Talent, Nowhere Near, winner
2023 Villa Perochon, 30 years later?, Alien life form, winner
2023 OD prize, Nowhere Near, Open Doors gallery, London, jurors pick
2023 Helsinki photo festival, Nowhere Near, winner
2023 Lensculture Portrait Award, Nowhere Near, finalist
2023 Kuala Lumpur Photography Festival, Nowhere Near, winnner
2023 Leica Oscar Barnack Award, High fire in the forest heart, nominee
2023 Felix Schoeller Photo Award, Nowhere Near, finalist
2023 CAP Centre for African Photography prize, Nowhere Near, finalist
2022 UNSTUCK grant, Nowhere Near, Magenta Foundation, winner
2022 Korridor – Preis für Dokumentarfotografie Innsbruck, Nowhere Near, winner
2022 In-Cadaques, Nowhere Near, finalist
2022 Cortona on the move award, High fire in the forest’s heart, finalist
2022 Aftermath project Grant, High fire in the forest's heart, finalist
2021 Leica Oscar Barnack Award, High fire in the forest’s heart, Newcomers award nominee
2021 Premio Francesco Fabbri, Nowhere Near, finalist
2021 OD-photo prize, Nowhere Near, shortlisted
2021 ISPA Italian Sustainability Award, Nowhere Near, finalist
2021 Bird in Flight, Nowhere Near, finalist
2021 World Press Photo, Portraits Series, Nowhere Near, winner
2021 BUP book award, Nowhere near, shorlisted
2021 Intersection Vol.1, Nowhere Near, finalist
2021 Gomma Grant, Nowhere Near, finalist
2020 The World Within, Sleeping Pill, Hangar gallery, laureate
2020 Leica Oscar Barnack Award, Nowhere Near, Newcomers award nominée
2019 Zine Tonic book Award, Nowhere Near, winner
2019 Photolux Award, Nowhere Near, shortlisted
2019 PH museum Women Photographers Grant,Nowhere Near, shortlisted
2019 Canon Young Photographers Award, Nowhere Near, winner
2019 Premio Combat, photography section, Nowhere Near, winner
Publications
2026 Stern Crime, Banda fiat Uno Bianca, August 2026
2025 Exibart 222 artist to invest in, ANIMA, catalogue
2025 100 Leica stories, book
2024 Internazionale, Nowhere Near, September issue
2023 Il fotografo, Nowhere Near, October issue
2023 Leica Fotografie International, Hypnerotomacchia Venetiae, October issue
2022 La meraviglia del possibile, LUISS press, 2 issue, FULU MIZIKI
2022 20er magazine, Nowhere Near, January issue, cover story
2022 Fisheye Magazine, Nowhere Near, May issue
2022 D la Repubblica, Nowhere Near, 15.01.2022
2021 D la Repubblica, Alien life form, Next Generation issue, 17.04.2021
2021 Dis-connessi, Alien life form, Istituto degli innocenti, Catalogue
2021 Giovane Fotografia Italiana, Nowhere Near, Fotografia Europea, Catalogue
2021 The World Within, Sleeping Pill, Photo Brussels 05, Catalogue
2021 RIVA, Murate Art District, I guess this river never knew, Catalogue
2021 LFI Magazine, Nowhere Near, February - March 2021 issue, cover story
2020 Phmuseum blog, The hope and heartache of African migrants, Nowhere Near
2020 LFI Magazine, Sleeping Pill, April 2020, issue
2020 Internazionale Extra Foto, Sleeping Pill, spring 2020
2019 D-Young special issue, Nowhere Near, 30.03.2019
Talks and lectures
2026 From Collection to Connection, Futurelab Lounge, Ars Electronica festival talk with Jaron Ghani, Martin Hochleitner, Nikolaus Sabathiel, John Stack, and Anna Weiss
2026 Ecologie dello sguardo, Murate Art District, talk con curatore Lorenzo Bruni
2023 A fair and balanced representation of asylum seekers and refugees in the media, Charter of Rome, Trieste, IT
2023 Fondazione Studio Marangoni, Creative Light course, Florence, IT
2022 Fondazione Studio Marangoni, Creative and Technical writing for artistic practise course (12 h), Florence, IT
2021 University of Minnesota, Guest lecture on documentary photography, Florence, IT
2021 Fondazione Studio Marangoni, Orientation lecture for the third year students, Florence, IT
2021 Terra di Tutti Film Festival, Photography for human rights, Bologna, IT
2021 World Press Photo Expert Talk, Aethetics and Composition in documentary
Interviews and online publications
2026 Atpdiary by Mauro Zanchi https://atpdiary.com/alisa-martynova-cosmogonia-red-lab-gallery-milano/
2025 Leica Time travel through a centuryhttps://timeline.leica-camera.com/en/years/2017
2024 Internazionale https://www.internazionale.it/magazine/2024/09/19/come-le-stelle-nella-notte
2024 Fisheye Magazine https://fisheyemagazine.fr/article/focus-75-les-cyborgs-dalisa-martynova/
2023 Leica Fotografie International online https://leica-camera.blog/2023/10/02/hypnerotomachia-venetiae/
2022 Fisheye magazine https://fisheyemagazine.fr/article/latmosphere-du-sentiment/
2022 URBANAUTICA https://urbanautica.com/interview/alisa-martynova-nowhere-near/2555
2021 Internazionale online https://www.internazionale.it/notizie/giovanna-d-ascenzi/2021/07/23/galassie-vicine-alisa-martynova
2021 Seeds of Florence https://seedsofflorence.it/discovery/intervista-a-alisa-martynova-vincitrice-al-photo-contest-2021/
2021 Leica Fotografie International online https://lfi-online.de/ceemes/en/blog/alisa-martynova-nowhere-near-2377.html
2021 Leica Fotografie International online https://lfi-online.de/ceemes/en/blog/alisa-martynova-somewhere-in-the-mountains-somewhere-in-the-sea-2501.html
2020 Leica Camera https://leica-camera.blog/2020/07/20/sleeping-pill/
2020 Ph Museum https://phmuseum.com/news/hope-heartache-african-migrants