Architecture is all around us, but have you ever noticed how a simple shift in perspective can turn an ordinary building into something extraordinary? That’s the magic of architectural photography, and the inaugural PERSPA Awards 2026 brings that idea to life in spectacular fashion.
Organized by the France-based Association PERSPA, the competition’s first edition, titled “Architectural Perspective 2026,” celebrates photographers who see buildings differently. From historic landmarks and breathtaking cityscapes to mesmerizing geometric patterns and beautifully composed interiors, these images reveal the built environment’s artistic soul.
Alessia Santambrogio takes home the prestigious Photographer of the Year title for her seven-image series, “A Historic Italian Theatre From the 1700s.” The series also claimed wins in three categories: Cultural, Historic & Heritage, and Open Color. That’s quite a remarkable achievement!
Judged by architectural photography experts John Gollings, Glenn McArthur, and Paul Raftery, the competition highlights the incredible creativity and vision behind contemporary architectural photography.
Get ready to explore 47 winning photographs that play with light, shadow, symmetry, and perspective. Some might make you appreciate familiar buildings in an entirely new way, while others will have you looking twice to figure out what you’re seeing.
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#1. Overall Winner: A historic Italian theatre from the 1700s by Alessia Santambrogio, Italy
"I am a professional architectural and stage photographer and photographic-editorial archivist based in Italy. For me, photography is far more than a simple act of documentation; it is an ongoing exploration of the invisible geometries that govern space, light, and human presence. My professional journey is deeply rooted in stage photography, with a strong focus on the world of opera."
#2. Abstract – 1st Place Winner: Homerton College Dining Hall by David Valinsky, United Kingdom (UK)
"Light across the wall of the dining hall at Homerton College, Cambridge."
#3. Abstract – 2nd Place Winner: The Solitaire as an Abstraction by SchirZan, Germany
"This series has been newly reworked. It captures modern urban architecture in a play of light and shadow. Clear lines, geometric structures, and distinctive perspectives convey both energy and aesthetics. Reflections and the interplay between building and sky create depth and invite exploration, while carefully chosen angles reveal a tension between rigor and lightness."
#4. Abstract – 3rd Place Winner: Stairs at FotoMuseum Rotterdam by Michael Stierle, Belgium
"The photo shows the upper stairs at the Nederlands Fotomuseum, Rotterdam."
#5. Aerial – 1st Place Winner: Suburban Dystopia by Florian Kriechbaumer, United Arab Emirates
"A purpose-built villa community on the outskirts of Dubai utilizing identical designs for the houses, with a two color pattern and a rectangular access street system. The result is a visually striking but eerily uniform grid."
#6. Aerial – 2nd Place Winner: East Link by Jean Marc La Roque, Australia
"Shot during the construction of East Link freeway for the annual report."
#7. Aerial – 3rd Place Winner: Beacon by Derry Ainsworth, Hong Kong
"Captures a rare and fleeting atmospheric phenomenon where Hong Kong’s iconic International Finance Centre (IFC) tower pierces through a dense layer of low-level advection fog. This striking visual occurs when warm, humid maritime air passes over cooler coastal waters, pooling in the city’s waterfront valleys to create a dramatic "sea of clouds" effect that entirely submerges the lower levels of the skyscrapers."
#8. Black and white – 1st Place Winner: La Mágia de las formas y la luz by Jordi Egea Torrent, Spain
"Formas orgánicas de Zaha Hadid."
#9. Black and white – 2nd Place Winner: Topologie Urbaine by Misa ATO, France
"The relationship of emptiness between built spaces is the foundation of my artistic approach. I draw from it a plastic and semantic material from which I construct my graphic universe. It is not the faithful reproduction of the building that matters to me. While respecting its origin, its nature, its function, I seek new forms. I create tension through disparate shadows, through diverging lines, to give rise to a dynamic and harmonious balance."
#10. Black and white – 3rd Place Winner: Zakim by Larry Dunn, United States (US)
"Zakim bridge in Boston, Massachusetts, USA"
#11. Cityscape – 1st Place Winner: The Strong Light work of Engineers by Conrad Saya Reina, Japan
"This is an iconic view of the Williamsburg Bridge taken from Adams Street, Brooklyn. Leica M2 with a 35mm Summicron 8 element lens."
#12. Cityscape – 2nd Place Winner: Nothing else matters by Andrea Francolini, Australia
"“Nothing Else Matters” is a journey through the loneliness that arrives when life suddenly becomes heavy and the people around you offer the classic line: “If you need anything, let me know.” Helpful in theory, useless when you can barely decide what socks to wear in the morning."
#13. Cityscape – 3rd Place Winner: City in the Clouds by Florian Kriechbaumer, United Arab Emirates
"A panoramic view of Downtown Dubai, Business Bay, and the Sheikh Zayed Road skyline, as the beautiful blue hues of the morning light slowly turn orange and yellow from the rising sun in the east, illuminating the world’s tallest building while thick fog rolling in from the desert covers the ground, creating the illusion of a city in the clouds."
#14. Cultural – 2nd Place Winner: Evening at the Registan by Emily M. Wilson, United States (US)
"Evening view of the mosque and madrasas at the Registan in Samarkand, Uzbekistan."
#15. Cultural – 3rd Place Winner: The great falcon. Zayed National Museum by Francesca Pompei, Italy
"High ventilation towers modelled on the wings of a falcon signal the new Zayed National Museum, by British studio Foster + Partners on Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi. It is dedicated to the UAE founder Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and celebrates the history and culture of the Emirates."
#16. Fine Art – 1st Place Winner: Breath of Light, Wings of Peace by Aubra Franklin, United States (US)
"Breath of Light, Wings of Peace. Santiago Calatrava | Oculus. At the first pale edge of dawn, before the city exhales its millions, the Oculus becomes what its maker always dreamed: a great white dove lifted gently from a child’s open hands."
#17. Fine Art – 2nd Place Winner: Sogni = Dreams, an epitaph by Giovanni Maria Sacco, Italy
"Exhibitions hall (formerly public baths) in Tresigallo, Italy. This is the metaphysical city, built in the ’30s.
This photo was shot on 4×5" film and appears in my book "Metafisica Concreta/Concrete Metaphysics", published by Contrasto Books in 2024."
#18. Fine Art – 3rd Place Winner: Star Wars by Dámaso Ávila, Spain
"In Barcelona, Spain, stands Casa Milà, a modernist building designed by the architect Antoni Gaudí. Its rooftop chimneys are surrounded by sculptures. I’ve taken a series of photos in which these sculptures resemble the warriors from the Star Wars film series, including the villainous Darth Vader."
#19. France – 1st Place Winner: Summer swim at Molitor by Soo Burnell, United Kingdom (UK)
"Swimmers in front of the iconic view of Piscine Molitor. This Art Deco building has been restored 10 years ago, from the former work of the architect Lucien Pollet. The photographer Soo Burnell contrasts the grandeur of the architecture with the serenity of water."
#20. France – 2nd Place Winner: Le square Rapp, Lavirotte Building, Paris, France by Sonia Melnikova-Raich, United States (US)
"The Lavirotte Building, at 29 Avenue Rapp in Paris’s 7th arrondissement, designed by Jules Lavirotte and built in 1899–1901, is one of the finest surviving examples of Art Nouveau architecture and is also among the most photographed buildings in Paris. Rather than documenting this celebrated landmark from a familiar viewpoint, I was drawn to its fleeting reflection in the mirror of a passing car."
#21. France – 3rd Place Winner: Saint-Denis Pleyel Station by Thomas JENNY, France
"Magnificent modern architecture, designed by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, where wood and glass are featured prominently to allow natural light to be present on all floors."
#22. Geometry – 1st Place Winner: The Arcade Sun by Petr Vapenik, Czech Republic
"The ceiling of an arcade near Venceslas Square in center of Prague, Czech Republic. Construction of the ceiling in natural daily light is visually enriched by an artificial light in the interior of the arcade. The photo was taken right after the spring storm, when it got dark briefly so the artificial light switched on automatically."
#23. Geometry – 2nd Place Winner: Concrete void by Eugenio Pizzo, Italy
"This minimalist architectural study captures a dramatic interplay of geometry and extreme contrast. A raw, board-formed concrete facade is sharply sliced by a profound, non-Euclidean black void. The skewed angle of the aperture creates an unstable negative space that defies conventional perspective."
#24. Geometry – 3rd Place Winner: Chromatic Intersect by Martin Wacker, Germany
"A vibrant study in structural rhythm and form, where overlapping curves and intersecting facade bands transform modern urban architecture into a dynamic graphic composition."
#25. Historic & Heritage – 2nd Place Winner: Bolhão Market – Oporto by Antonio Coelho, Portugal
"The origins of Mercado do Bolhão, one of the most emblematic buildings in the city, date back to 1839, when the Porto City Council decided to build a square on land acquired from the chapter. In this place there was an extensive marsh, crossed by a stream that formed a water bubble there, which resulted in the name of the market, ‘Bolhão’. The current building was built in 1914, in a project designed by the architect Correia da Silva."
#26. Historic & Heritage – 3rd Place Winner: Cologne Cathedral "Kölner Dom" by Hans-Georg Esch, Germany
#27. Human & Architecture – 1st Place Winner: Pretty in Pink by Jeannette Matthies, Germany
“Pretty in Pink”—because without the pink, it just wouldn’t be pretty; this photo shows how lost a person looks in a housing development in a big city.
#28. Human & Architecture – 2nd Place Winner: Suspended time by Stephane Navailles, France
"Suspended time : On the dial of his watch both hands point to half past. And the rest of the world is not clockwise either."
#29. Human & Architecture – 3rd Place Winner: Geometry of Transit by Martin Wacker, Germany
"Walking into the underground concourse of Malmö’s Triangeln station, I was immediately struck by the sheer, futuristic scale of the architecture. It feels less like a train station and more like a subterranean cathedral dedicated to movement. I wanted this photograph to capture that exact feeling of stepping out of the dark, industrial depths and into the light."
#30. Industrial – 1st Place Winner: Monoliths of Power: the Architecture of Silence by Marcel van Beek, Germany
"Monoliths of Power" captures the imposing presence of 20th-century industrial architecture through a lens of stark, sepia-toned minimalism. These structures, once the engines of economic progress, are reimagined as silent monuments to human ambition.
#31. Industrial – 2nd Place Winner: Brilliant Star City by DI CHANG, Taiwan
The "Brilliant Star City" series began in 2025. Architectural photography has always been one of my preferred genres, particularly industrial architecture. I am deeply drawn to the striking contrasts, pronounced tonal intensity, and the almost science-fiction-like aesthetic embodied by these factories.
#32. Industrial – 3rd Place Winner: Dames Point Bridge by Cameron Davidson, United States (US)
"Dames Point Bridge, crossing the St. John’s River of Florida, USA."
#33. Minimalism – 1st Place Winner: The Bookmark, (World Trade Center) by Stephane Malassine, United States (US)
"On the eve of the 25th anniversary of 9/11, The Bookmark reflects on a singular moment in history. The composition and upward perspective transform One World Trade Center into a visual bookmark in time—a monument forever linked to the events of September 11, 2001."
#34. Minimalism – 2nd Place Winner: Cathedral of Water by Petr Vapenik, Czech Republic
"Interior of a brick water reservoir from the second half of the 19th century, Brno, Czech Republic."
#35. Minimalism – 3rd Place Winner: Les volets blancs by Claude Grellet, France
"A pink wall with white shutters. The only things that disrupt the rigid geometry of the picture are the diagonals of the half-opened shutters, the triangular shadows underneath, and the slanting bars of the metal grid below. The lamppost and the drying clothes underneath one window bring a touch of life to the picture."
#36. Modern Architecture – 1st Place Winner: Reticulating Splines by Craig Glass, United States (US)
"The gradational interplay between the lines of 321 North Clark and the curves of Marina City is almost like something straight out of a computer game. 8/9/24, Chicago, IL"
#37. Modern Architecture – 2nd Place Winner: European architecture by Eric Chatelain, France
"A selection of the finest examples of modern architecture I have come across during my various travels across much of Europe: The Twist, Kirstefos, Norway"
#38. Modern Architecture – 3rd Place Winner: The Golden Timber by Witsawarut Kekina, Thailand
"At Osaka Expo 2025 a cyclist rides beneath a vast wooden structure glowing in the warm light of sunset."
#39. Night & Low Light – 1st Place Winner: Stillness by Ana Partene, Romania
"As daylight fades, reflections and quiet light reshape the city into a moment of balance and stillness."
#40. Night & Low Light – 2nd Place Winner: York Centre of Excellence at Night by David Valinsky, United Kingdom (UK)
"The York Centre of Excellence by Tonkin Liu is enlivened at night by light from the workshop, particularly in the way this interacts with the exposed roof structure that unifies the complex."
#41. Open Color – 2nd Place Winner: Vertical Harmony by Eugenio Pizzo, Italy
"This architectural photograph captures a striking interplay of geometry, stark shadows, and a vibrant color palette. Focusing on the structured facade of a modern residential building, the composition is divided into two distinct sections: warm reddish-orange tones contrasted with clean white and deep dark red surfaces."
#42. Open Color – 3rd Place Winner: La Cheminée Moretti by Rosetta Bonatti, Italy
"The Moretti (or Cheminée Moretti) is a work by the French artist Raymond Moretti. It is one of the works of art in La Défense, France. This is the covering of a 32 m high ventilation chimney with several hundred brightly colored fiberglass tubes."
#43. Stairs – 1st Place Winner: Endless Staircase Ólafur Elíasson by Massimo Borchi, Italy
"A sculpture of a staircase, an endless staircase, a tribute to stairs and perhaps a metaphor."
#44. Stairs – 2nd Place Winner: You Spin Me Round by Dorota Qaid, Canada
"Stairs can be a wonderful subject to photograph. I took those photos in a few different places: Warsaw, Toronto, Dubai, and Tangier."
#45. Stairs – 3rd Place Winner: Stairs at FotoMuseum Antwerp by Michael Stierle, Belgium
"The photo shows the staircase of the FotoMuseum in Antwerp."
#46. Symmetry – 1st Place Winner: Symmetric Living by Florian Kriechbaumer, United Arab Emirates
"Four houses adorn the tip of one of Palm Jumeirah’s fronds in Dubai, UAE. The photo was taken at a time when the shadows also supported the symmetrical arrangement of the composition."
#47. Symmetry – 2nd Place Winner: Taj Mahal from Mehtab Bagh at Dawn by Kip Harris, Canada
"The Mehtab Bagh is a garden on the opposite side of the Yamuna River from the Taj Mahal. This image was taken as the building outline emerged from the early morning mist."
Frequetnly Asked Questions:
What are the PERSPA Awards 2026?
The PERSPA Awards 2026 are an international photography competition organized by the France-based Association PERSPA. Its inaugural edition, titled “Architectural Perspective 2026,” celebrates photographers who capture architecture through creative perspectives, striking compositions, light, geometry, and atmosphere.
Who won Photographer of the Year at the PERSPA Awards 2026?
Alessia Santambrogio won Photographer of the Year at the inaugural PERSPA Awards 2026. Her seven-image series, “A Historic Italian Theatre From the 1700s,” impressed the judges and also won three categories: Cultural, Historic & Heritage, and Open Color.
Who judged the PERSPA Awards 2026?
Architectural photography experts John Gollings, Glenn McArthur, and Paul Raftery judged the PERSPA Awards 2026. Their expertise helped recognize outstanding photographic work that explores architecture through innovative compositions, visual storytelling, geometric patterns, and creative interpretations of the built environment.
What types of photographs were recognized at the PERSPA Awards 2026?
The PERSPA Awards 2026 recognized architectural photographs featuring historic buildings, cultural spaces, cityscapes, interiors, geometric details, and creative perspectives. The selected images demonstrate how photographers use light, shadow, color, symmetry, and composition to transform the built environment into compelling visual art.
Why is architectural photography important?
Architectural photography helps people appreciate the beauty, character, and design of buildings through carefully considered compositions. By highlighting details, textures, geometry, light, and perspective, photographers reveal aspects of familiar structures that often go unnoticed in everyday life.
