Paris Photo Appoints Holly Roussell and Federica Chiochetti as Curators for 25th Edition

Paris Photo, the world’s leading international art fair dedicated to the photographic medium, is pleased to announce its 2022 guest curators. Championing emerging talent, China/Switzerland-based curator Holly Roussell will present the Curiosa sector. Bringing women in photography to the forefront, writer, curator, lecturer Federica Chiochetti will present the Elles x Paris Photo program. The 25th edition of Paris Photo will be held this November 10-13, 2022 at the Grand Palais Ephémère. “We are excited to see the fresh look that both our curators will bring to the international photography landscape. Holly Roussell will highlight emerging photographers currently underrepresented in Europe. Federica Chiocchetti will bring talented women to the forefront, carrying on the admirable work of her predecessors for the Elles x Paris Photo program,” said Paris Photo Director Florence Bourgeois.

HOLLY ROUSSELL X CURIOSA The Curiosa Sector, initiated in 2015, provides younger galleries a greater opportunity to participate in a leading art fair and introduces collectors to new talent and the latest trends in contemporary creation. This year, the Curiosa sector will welcome 16 galleries. Holly Roussell is an independent curator, museologist, and art historian specializing in photography and contemporary art from Asia. She is curator at UCCA Center for Contemporary Art in China, a major contemporary art venue that organizes exhibitions of both established artists, as well as of young Chinese and international talents. Since 2021 she is also an artistic advisor for Fotografiska Shanghai. Roussell has organized more than 20 group and solo exhibitions around the world (Folkwang Museum; MUCEM; Les Rencontres d’Arles; Somerset House; NGV Melbourne; Lianzhou Photography Festival; OCT-Loft Shenzhen; Shanghai Centre of Photography; Auckland Art Gallery; Fotografiska; MMCA: Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Seoul, among other institutions). With the Musée de l’Elysée in Lausanne, she coordinated from 2013-2017, the worldwide travelling exhibitions program and the Prix Elysée photography prize. She is a regular expert to international portfolio reviews and has contributed to a number of publications on photography and Chinese art. In 2022, Roussell will join the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Seoul, South Korea as curatorial researcher in residence.

“I am very excited to curate the Curiosa sector for Paris Photo’s special anniversary year. Bringing forth artists at a crucial point in their career, in front of global collectors and renowned institutions for photography, is key for our ecosystem. This year I look forward to presenting both emerging artists and their galleries in the traditional sense, and also some select individuals who have not engaged much with the European market, but have been highly influential in their local context,” said curator Holly Roussell.

FEDERICA CHIOCCHETTI X ELLES X PARIS PHOTO Elles x Paris Photo is a program initiated in 2018 in partnership with the French Ministry of Culture to promote the visibility of women artists and their contribution to the history of photography. Since 2019 the program benefits from the support of Kering ׀ Women In Motion. Thanks to the participation of exhibiting galleries, the representation of women artists at the Fair has so far risen by 12% over the last 3 years. Artists featured Elles x Paris Photo program receive yearlong exposure via parisphoto. com with video interviews, resources and statistics dedicated to women in photography. Federica Chiocchetti is a writer, curator, editor and lecturer specializing in historical and contemporary photography and literature. Through her platform Photocaptionist she collaborates with international museums including Jeu de Paume, MEP, V&A, Kunsthalle Budapest, FOAM, private collections such as David Solo, Archive of Modern Conflict, the universities of Oxford and ECAL, as well as festivals, fairs, publishers and bookstores. She holds a PhD in ‘Photo-Texts’, from London’s University of Westminster, which she is transforming into a touring exhibition, book and educational project, the Word and Image Workshop. She has won a number of residencies (Fondation Michalski, Cité internationale des arts), awards (Kraszna-Krausz Best Photography Book, Vienna Photo Book Dummy) and was included in 2016 as one of the "16 Women Curators Who Make a Difference" by Artnet. Her research on women in photography has been featured in multiple forms by L'Uomo Vogue, Fotomuseum Winthertur, 10 x 10 Photobooks, London Art Fair and The Photographers' Gallery.

“It is an honor to be named curator for the 2022 edition of Elles x Paris Photo. The number of incredibly talented women photo-artists whose work or estate is yet to be represented by galleries is still surprisingly high. This initiative is therefore fundamental because we are not yet in a "post-quota" society. Change is possible if together we convince the industry and the market that these photographers deserve our attention." Federica Chiocchetti.