Sigma announces KYOTOGRAPHIE 2025 and KG+ 2025 Sponsorship and Exhibitions

Sigma Corporation (CEO: Kazuto Yamaki) is pleased to announce its sponsorship of the KYOTOGRAPHIE International Photography Festival 2025 and its satellite event, KG+2025. Both events will be held at various locations in Kyoto, Japan from April 12 to May 11, 2025.

As part of our sponsorship, we present solo exhibitions by Mao Ishikawa and Liu Hsing Yu, as well as the KG+SELECT 2025 finalists exhibition. We are also co-publishing the photobook "KG+SELECT - 10 Years, 10 Artists," which celebrates the tenth anniversary of the KG+SELECT competition, and bringing back the Sigma Pop-Up Photobook Library, where visitors can browse our growing archive of Japanese and international photobooks.

Sigma is proud to contribute to the diverse and exciting program of the 2025 editions of KYOTOGRAPHIE and KG+, and we hope that visitors will be inspired by the many works shown throughout the festival.

Sigma's involvement in the KYOTOGRAPHIE International Photography Festival 2025 and KG+ 2025 includes the following exhibitions and initiatives.

Sponsored programs

• KYOTOGRAPHIE｜Mao Ishikawa solo exhibition (Kondaya Genbei Chikuin-no-Ma)
  Building on our sponsorship of last year's Kikuji Kawada exhibition at KYOTOGRAPHIE, Sigma is proud to present another solo exhibition by an artist whose work has profoundly shaped the landscape of Japanese photography: Mao Ishikawa. This exhibition features Ishikawa's earliest series, "Red Flower, The Women of Okinawa", as well as her most recent, ongoing project, in which she portrays people on a remote Okinawa island.
• KG+｜KG+SELECT 2025 (Horikawa Oike Gallery)
  The KG+SELECT Award highlights the work of promising photographers from around the world and serves as an important stepping stone to showcase their work to an international audience, with the Grand Prix winner joining the official KYOTOGRAPHIE program the following year. The KG+SELECT 2025 exhibition showcases the work of all ten finalists for the duration of the festival. Sigma supports both the KG+SELECT competition and the finalists exhibition as the sole sponsor.
  
  
• KYOTOGRAPHIE｜Liu Hsing Yu solo exhibition (Gallery Sugata)
  Sigma presents the solo exhibition of Taiwanese artist and KG+SELECT 2024 winner Liu Hsing Yu. Following last year's critically acclaimed exhibition as part of the KG+SELECT competition, this year Liu participates in the main program of KYOTOGRAPHIE with two series that explore themes of family, identity, agriculture, gender roles, and the relationship between past and present.
  
  
• KG+ ｜ Photobook "KG+SELECT - 10 Years, 10 Artists"
  This year marks the tenth anniversary of the KG+SELECT competition. To celebrate the occasion, KG+ and Sigma are co-publishing the photobook "KG+SELECT - 10 Years, 10 Artists", featuring works by all ten Grand Prix winners. The book will be available for purchase at a special pop-up bookstore at Time's Building in Kawaramachi Sanjo and from the official KG+ online shop.

Sigma-related exhibitions & special events

• KG+ SPECIAL｜Sigma Pop-Up Photobook Library (Time's Building)
  Encouraged by last year's success, Sigma is pleased to bring back our pop-up photobook library, this time at Time's Building in Kawaramachi Sanjo. Visitors are invited to browse and read a curated selection of over 1500 titles from Sigma's growing archive of international and Japanese photobooks free of charge. The library also includes a special section of recommended publications by KYOTOGRAPHIE-affiliated artists.
  
  
• KG+ Special ｜ Sigma Mini Lounge (Horikawa Oike Gallery)
  The Sigma Mini Lounge offers festival-goers a place to relax and hang out. Located in the Horikawa Oike Gallery, the central hub of KG+SELECT, visitors are invited to take a short break between exhibitions, catch up with friends, and explore a special exhibition highlighting our newly announced Sigma BF camera.

Committed to the arts

As a manufacturer of cameras and lenses, we have always been deeply motivated by the art of photography. We take inspiration from the passion of photographers everywhere and wish that our never-ending pursuit of quality and innovation may help artists in achieving their vision.
Supporting the photographic and visual arts is a core tenet of our corporate mission.
Following our credo, "The Art of engineering, Engineering for Art", Sigma continues to sponsor and collaborate with numerous festivals, initiatives and events, to grow and share our library of photobooks, and to expand and deepen our support of the arts through various new engagements.

Related links

KYOTOGRAPHIE International Photography Festival: https://www.kyotographie.jp/en/
KG+: https://kgplus.kyotographie.jp/en/