The Consell de Mallorca inaugurated the first edition of Mallorca Photofest 2026 this Saturday at La Misericòrdia, a new biennial festival dedicated to photography and contemporary imagery.
The cultural center served as the venue for an opening ceremony marking the start of a program that will run through August 30 and extend to both Palma and various municipalities in the Part Forana region, the island’s government announced in a press release.
One of the hallmarks of Mallorca Photofest will be "the diversity and complementarity" of the venues participating in this first edition and the variety of photography-related initiatives.
The festival is organized through a network of museums, foundations, galleries, independent spaces, and town halls across the island, enabling the program to be held at multiple locations throughout Mallorca.
La Misericòrdia will host two of the main exhibitions of this first edition: 'Grandeza y bajeza de lo espontáneo' by Bandia Ribeira, winner of the 2025 Premi Mallorca de Fotografia Contemporània, which can be viewed in the cultural center’s chapel; and 'When the Day Ends' by Beatriz Polo Iañez, winner of the 2025 Premi Mallorca de Fotografia Talent Illenc, in the Arxiu del So i de la Imatge hall. Both exhibitions will open on June 4.
The Museu de Mallorca will also join the cultural program with the exhibition 'Negatius de sol. Two Centuries Since the Birth of Photography,' which will open on July 10.
Curated by Martí Llorens (Factoría Heliográfica) and the Fundació Casa Planas, the exhibition offers a journey through the origins of photography and its evolution to the present day.
The island’s Minister of Culture and Heritage, Antònia Roca, celebrated that the festival “will fill Mallorca with visual culture to give visibility to contemporary photographic creation.” Among those attending the opening was the mayor of Palma, Jaime Martínez.
