National Photographic Portrait Prize 2025 Finalist
‘Ghyslaine Gau appears here as both subject and fragment. Born in Marseille to Martinican parents and raised in the suburbs of Paris, she is a dancer, performer and part of the collective Wusinsans with Constanza Mendoza and I. Inspired by Édouard Glissant’s concept of the abyss, this portrait – shot on film – gestures toward the unknown between self and other. It reflects the impossibility of fully capturing or knowing another, embracing relationality and absence. Resisting conventional portraiture, it offers a glimpse into a moment that remains incomplete, echoing the limits of language and perception.’
Shoufay Derz is an interdisciplinary artist working on Gadigal land/Sydney. Drawing on poetic and philosophical frameworks, her practice explores themes of transformation, absence and shared uncertainties.
The NPPP is an annual prize for Australian photographers. The year’s most outstanding photographic portrait is awarded a $30,000 cash prize and photographic equipment valued at $20,000 courtesy of our Imaging Partner, Canon Australia.
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