PhotoKTM is back! The fifth iteration of the photo festival, organised by photo.circle, will kick off on 24 February and run till 31 March.

Launched in 2015, the exhibitions at the festival are centred on a new theme every year. The theme for this year is nature and current issues surrounding climate change. The exhibitions of this year will address a variety of environmental issues, including the staggering global crisis that is unfolding around us on a daily basis. Despite our diverse geopolitical and economic realities, the festival aims to explore the stories and histories that have shaped our shared understanding of current issues.

PhotoKTM will showcase visual projects and learning initiatives from a diverse range of participants—including Bangladeshi artist, curator, and teacher Munem Wasif, Swiss artist and writer Uriel Orlow, Kathmandu-based digital archive Nepal Picture Library, KTK-Belt Project which works to catalyze new models of biodiversity conservation and environmental learning in eastern Nepal, Indian filmmaker Sriram Murali, the Feather Library which is an initiative co-founded by Isha Munshi to document, identify and study feathers of Indian birds, artist and writer Alana Hunt from Miriwoong country in the north-west of Australia, Mexican/British multidisciplinary visual artist Monica Alcazar Duarte, Indian filmmaker Amar Kanwar, and author, art curator, filmmaker, and theorist of photography and visual culture, Ariella Azoulay, among others.

Every year, PhotoKTM also organises a research residency. This year's residency is co-organised by Jatayu Vulture Restaurant and Bird Conservation Nepal (BCN). Sarah Kazmi (Pakistan/Norway), Ajay Narsingh Rana (Nepal), Hillside Projects/ Jonas Böttern (Sweden), and Nilanjana Nandy (India) will spend four weeks at the Jatayu Vulture Restaurant in Kawasoti, Nawalparasi, which is located on the periphery of Chitwan National Park. 

They will learn about vultures, community-managed conservation models, resilience, loss, and the possibilities for regeneration and coexistence in general there and present their findings during the first week of the festival at an open house in Kathmandu.

PhotoKTM also hosts the South Asia Incubator, a flagship programme designed to provide a platform for emerging and mid-career visual practitioners from South Asia to engage with global professionals and institutions who can provide inputs to exhibit, publish, and further develop their practices.

PhotoKTM is partnering with Lalitpur-based non-profit Srijanalaya to run a robust Art Education and Outreach programme this year too.

Photography enthusiasts can participate in the programs and activities that will take place during the first week of PhotoKTM—February 25 to March 2. The festival activities include artist talks, panels and discussions, workshops, portfolio evaluations, and networking events. The exhibitions will run until March 31.