IPMA Festival 2025

The International Photography and Media Art Festival (IPMA) is one of the most significant visual arts platforms in the Baltic region, dedicated to contemporary photography and media art projects. Launched in 2023, it quickly established itself as an essential international event, connecting artists, researchers, educators, and audiences worldwide.

At the core of each festival is a timely theme prompting engagement with contemporary issues through visual storytelling and modern art forms. IPMA distinguishes itself with a professionally curated program showcasing a broad spectrum of projects from both international and Lithuanian artists. In 2025, exhibitions will take place in Lithuania’s two major cities, Vilnius and Kaunas, leveraging their cultural potential to engage diverse audiences.

Beyond exhibitions, IPMA hosts international discussions, lectures, portfolio reviews, and educational workshops. The festival prioritizes the dissemination of high-quality artistic works, their accessibility, cultural impact, and fosters collaborations among institutions, curators, artists, and emerging creators.

IPMA collaborates with international photography and media art festivals, professional organizations, academic institutions, and visual art researchers, aiming to be an inclusive, dynamic, and internationally relevant platform.

The International Photography and Media Art Festival (IPMA) invites artists, creators, and researchers to submit applications for participation in the 2025 festival program, scheduled for October 1–31 in Kaunas and Vilnius.

This year's theme: IDEAS. CREATIVE AND DESTRUCTIVE

Ideas have the power to create worlds – but they can also destroy them. The festival encourages reflection on the influence of ideas in our daily lives, culture, politics, art, and beliefs. Each project serves as a mirror reflecting whether an idea leads to freedom or restriction.

Ideas are invisible forces shaping our world. They originate in our minds but their impact can be global – building empires, tearing down walls, creating new art movements, or shifting social norms. Ideas can ignite revolutions, open new horizons of thought, yet equally serve as tools of manipulation, coercion, or fear.

The festival theme, “Ideas. Creative and Destructive,” invites artists to explore the nature and ambiguous power of ideas. How do ideas arise within our consciousness? When do they become sources of creativity or ideological weapons? Where is the boundary between inspiration and fanaticism?

Ideas influence not just global phenomena but also impact us personally. They permeate everyday decisions, family traditions, and creative choices. Beliefs, gender, identity, the concept of success – all are shaped by ideas, often not our own. They can empower us creatively or subtly constrain us.

This theme invites reflection on the underlying aspects of our beliefs. What do we pass from generation to generation? Which ideas do we choose to uphold, and which ones should we release?

We invite submissions of projects that raise questions, challenge established norms, and ignite discussion.