The project, organized by La Fondazione Le Stanze della Fotografia and the Associazione per il Patrimonio delle Colline del Prosecco di Conegliano e Valdobbiadene, launches a free and open competition aimed at gathering testimonies, stories, and insights related to the theme of water within cultural and landscape heritage.

The initiative seeks to promote the memory, culture, and traditions of the territories, offering a space for expression and storytelling open to citizens, students, photographers, videomakers, and storytelling enthusiasts.

The project originates from the Colline del Prosecco di Conegliano e Valdobbiadene, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but extends its scope to a broader perspective. Participants are invited to explore the theme in relation to other World Heritage sites in Italy and worldwide.

Water thus becomes a universal narrative thread, capable of connecting places, cultures, and communities through images, words, and visual storytelling.

The inaugural edition of the competition is dedicated to the element of water, understood in its multiple forms and meanings: water flowing in natural landscapes, water that irrigates and sustains agriculture, water represented in art and culture, and water as a symbolic resource.

Participants are encouraged to tell this element through photography, writing, and video, crafting narratives that combine visual dimensions with personal reflection.

Participation in the competition is free and open to everyone.

Submissions must be sent via email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., including the required material for the chosen category.

Participants must also publish their photographic and video materials on their social media channels, tagging the Organizers (Le Stanze della Fotografia and the Associazione per il Patrimonio delle Colline del Prosecco di Conegliano e Valdobbiadene).

The competition includes two participation categories:

1. PHOTOGRAPHY AND TEXT
The participant, whether individual or collective, must submit a project consisting of:

• a photographic reportage featuring a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 10 images;
• a narrative text with a maximum length of three pages;

2. VIDEO
The participant, whether individual or collective, must create a video-story with a maximum duration of 2 minutes, combining images, words, and sound.

The open call will be open from April 14, 2026, to September 30, 2026 (final deadline for submissions, unless extended). The selection of winners will take place within 20 days after the submission deadline.

In order to highlight different approaches and languages, the following distinct awards will be granted for each category (photography and video):

• Best Visual Story Award
  awarded to the project that effectively integrates images and text, standing out for narrative coherence, originality, and expressive quality;
• Best Language and Experimentation Award
  dedicated to works that excel in formal research, innovation, and the original use of the medium;
• Special Mention Under 30 / Schools
  reserved for projects created by students or young authors under 30, aimed at promoting new perspectives and emerging talent.

The selected projects will have the opportunity to be exhibited at Le Stanze della Fotografia, in a dedicated space.

A selection of the submitted works will be featured in a brochure/dépliant, which will be distributed at the Le Stanze della Fotografia bookshop and in selected bookstores and cultural spaces.

Projects will be evaluated by a jury composed of experts in photography, writing, and visual storytelling.

The jury will include two key figures in the photographic field: critic and curator Denis Curti and photographer Maurizio Galimberti; the President of the Associazione per il Patrimonio delle Colline, Marina Montedoro; and two experts in writing and communication, writers and journalists Antonio G. Bortoluzzi and Sabrina Zuccato.

This initiative is designed as a continuous project, which will explore a different natural element each year—water, air, fire, and earth. Each edition will invite participants to tell the story of these elements within UNESCO World Heritage Sites, fostering a dialogue between diverse territories, cultures, and landscapes.