© Fee-Gloria Grönemeyer – Lost Mermaid
BJP explores The Tree of Life: A Love Letter to Nature, the festival’s ninth edition in Milan
To exist is to intertwine. Our lives, seemingly isolated, are actually enmeshed in a web of relationships that extends beyond the visible and across boundaries between species. Both the quantum concept of “entanglement” and the Buddhist notion of “interbeing” confirm this theory, affirming that we are not independent entities, but exist in constant connection with everything around us. As Donna Haraway puts it, “We become-with each other or not at all.”
The ninth edition of the PhotoVogue Festival stems from this awareness. Held at BASE Milano from 6 to 9 March 2025, the world’s first conscious fashion photography festival revolves around The Tree of Life: A Love Letter to Nature this year. The theme is not only an invitation to contemplate the beauty of our planet but also a call to action to protect it.
Climate change, rising temperatures, deforestation, pollution, and industrial farming are just some of the factors threatening ecosystems and endangering the delicate balance that sustains life on Earth. Nature is not a resource, but a community of living beings. This year’s edition invites us to pause and observe – to recognise ourselves as threads in a vast tapestry, interwoven with both familiar and unknown creatures, across landscapes that hold the echoes of past and future generations.
“At a time when many of us feel uprooted, turning our attention to our fellow earthly companions offers ways to deeply connect with our places”
– Gavin Van Horn
At the heart of the festival is the exhibition that gave it its name, The Tree of Life: A Love Letter to Nature, a major showcase featuring the works of 50 international artists selected through an open call with over 5,000 applications. The final selection was curated by a distinguished jury composed of experts from all global Vogue editions, Condé Nast, and leading figures in the fields of photography, environmental science, and activism. Together, these artists offer a multifaceted vision of nature – not as something separate from us, but an intrinsic part of our existence and survival.
“Art has the power to inspire meaningful change,” says Alessia Glaviano, Head of Global PhotoVogue and Festival Director. “This edition of the PhotoVogue Festival aims to foster a deeper understanding of our kinship with all living beings and spark collective action to protect our shared home.”
The exhibited works span continents and generations, forming a choral celebration of the resilience of ecosystems while also revealing their fragility. Among the featured artists: Kin Coedel, whose Children of the Plateau captures the silent dignity of Tibetan nomadic herders and their symbiosis with the yaks that sustain them; Bettina Pittaluga, with Unconditional, reflecting on the unique relationship between humans and animals; and Lucía Alonso Garrido, whose Eskawatã Kayawai portrays the self-claimed Huni Kuin, or “true people,” now experiencing a cultural revival after narrowly escaping extinction in the last century. The projects featured explore the intimate connection between the human body and nature, weaving together both spirituality and materiality.
The Latin American Panorama section explores identity, culture and environmental interdependence. It features photographers like Gleeson Paulino (Brasa), who reflects on the contradictions of his homeland, while Gabriel Gomez (You Should Have Come Yesterday) investigates the shifting landscapes of memory. “Photography can reshape the way we see ourselves and the world,” says Gomez. “Through these narratives, we can not only listen but also see – raising awareness and, hopefully, inspiring action.”
Another crucial section of the festival is The Tree of Change, a series of slideshows, videos, and contributions from organisations dedicated to environmental advocacy. Among the featured works, Metaphysics of Mixture by the Institute for Postnatural Studies explores post-natural hybridity as an act of resistance and regeneration. The project challenges colonial botanical narratives and proposes new forms of relationship between humans and non-humans, embracing coexistence and transformation.
Lastly, the section In Vogue with Nature presents a digital exhibition that highlights iconic global Vogue covers celebrating the relationship between fashion and nature. Spanning decades, the covers emphasise sustainability, creativity, and the harmony between art and the environment.
Beyond the exhibitions, the PhotoVogue Festival hosted numerous panel discussions on the intersection of visual art, ethics, and activism. This year’s programme featured, among others, voices such as Ami Vitale, Richard Mosse, John Hausdoerffer, Gavin Van Horn, Alice Aedy, and John Steele.
The festival is not just a celebration of photography, but an appeal to collective responsibility. “At a time when many of us feel uprooted, turning our attention to our fellow earthly companions offers ways to deeply connect with our places, revitalise a sense of creaturely belonging, expand our empathetic imagination, and embrace the collective wonders of being alive in a more-than-human world”, says Gavin Van Horn, Executive Editor of Humans & Nature Press Books.
This sentiment is particularly evident in the images of Imraan Christian (Noma and Venus Rebirth, both part of the Ma Se Kinders project), which portray mythological figures and life cycles, as well as in Choi Sungdong’s Coexistence, a poetic meditation on the movement and interconnection of migratory birds.
Since its inception, the PhotoVogue Festival has been at the forefront of ethical and aesthetic discourse, exploring issues of identity, representation, inclusivity, and visual culture. This year’s theme reinforces the power of photography not only as an art form, but as a tool for understanding and shaping our world.
With a rich and compelling programme, the 2025 edition of the PhotoVogue Festival offers more than just images to admire – it presents visions to carry forward, narratives to protect, and a collective invitation to acknowledge the challenges faced by our planet and the need to take better care of it.