Mass Mentorship 2025/26

Application deadline: 28th February 2025, 8pm

An opportunity for new talent from underrepresented backgrounds in architectural photography

The Mass Mentorship is an initiative established by Mass Collective to champion new voices in architectural photography.

Open to young people aged 20–30 in London and from underrepresented backgrounds in the creative industries, the Mass Mentorship aims to create a cultural shift in architectural photography, where the authorship of the images we use to understand our cities fully reflects the diversity of the communities that inhabit the built environment.

Four selected applicants will each be awarded a £750 project grant and a year-long series of free mentoring sessions, masterclasses, and a London exhibition opportunity.

We are looking for candidates who are excited to bring bold new ideas to architectural photography, and who have the ambition to realise a personal photography project to be part of a group show in Spring 2026.

If you’d like to be part of this next generation of photographers we would love to hear from you, so please see the application information below.

2025 applications are now closed, thanks to all our applicants and we’ll be in touch soon!

“A valuable experience that has helped me realise my creativity, a truly important step in my journey of becoming a photographer”

Jane Lam, 2022/23 Mentee

The Opportunity

As a selected mentee you will benefit from:

→ Project Grant
A grant of £750 to support the production of your architectural photography project.

→ Masterclass Series
A series of masterclasses with industry leaders in architectural photography and related fields.

→ Individual Mentoring
A personal mentor to support you in the production of your project, and to share advice on developing your career.

→ Group Exhibition
The opportunity to exhibit your work from the year together in a London group exhibition in Spring 2026 (venue TBA).

→ Networking Opportunities
Building connections with Mass Collective’s wider network, creating new contacts and opportunities.

Timeline

→ 30th January 2025
Open call starts

→ 28th February 2025
Open call closes at 8pm UK time

→ 3rd March 2025
Shortlisted candidates informed

→ Week of 10th March 2025
Shortlisted candidates interviewed

→ Late March 2025
Mentees selected and programme begins

→ Spring 2026
Group exhibition, venue TBA

“This project has given me the chance to appreciate a new way of understanding photography.”

Kes-tchaas Eccleston, 2020/22 Mentee

Mentors

Each mentee will be paired with a Mass Collective photographer, experienced in both commercial architectural photography, and producing their own exhibition projects.

Francesco Russo

Henry Woide

Luca Piffaretti

Luke O’Donovan

Guest Tutors

Our masterclass series will be led by industry leaders from both architectural photography, and related fields which cover essential skills needed to pursue a creative career.

The Architectural Review Editorial Team

The Architectural Review examines the forces shaping architecture and the impact buildings have on the world in its thematic print issues and digital platforms. Based in London, the AR has been independent and international since 1896.

Celeste Bolte,
Communications Specialist

Founding director of SALT, an independent communications studio well-seasoned in publicising brilliant design. Founded in 2022, SALT has rapidly gained a reputation for representing the UK's most interesting architecture and design practices.

Gareth Gardner,
Photographer & Gallerist

Architectural photographer, film-maker,  journalist, gallerist and curator, based in Deptford, SE London. 
In 2019, Gareth opened a new gallery space in Deptford. Gareth Gardner Gallery hosts a programme of exhibitions dedicated to photography of architecture and the man-altered landscape.

Hélène Binet, Photographer

Swiss and French internationally acclaimed photographer based in London. Over a period of more than 35 years Binet has captured both contemporary and historic architecture. She is a fervent advocate of analogue photography, working exclusively with film, and a firm believer that ‘the soul of photography is its relationship with the instant’.

Jim Stephenson,
Photographer & Film Maker

Architectural photographer and film maker based in England, working all over the world.
Jim’s work is hallmarked by a keen eye for human interaction with architecture and the built environment, leaning toward a more documentary style.

Manijeh Verghese,
Curator & CEO of Open City

Across her career Manijeh has focussed on creating opportunities to widen participation in the making of our built environment. She is the CEO of Open City, and as a curator has worked on projects including the 2021 British Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale, and the South Asia Gallery at the Manchester Museum.

Valeria Carullo,
Curator at RIBA

Photographs Curator at the RIBA. Her principal area of research is the relationship between modern architecture and modern photography in the inter-war years. She regularly writes and lectures on architectural and photographic subjects, and has curated several exhibitions internationally, including her latest Wide Angle View at RIBA, 2023–2024.

Supporters

The Mass Mentorship has been made possible with the support of the Marchus Trust. If you would be interested in hearing more about sponsorship opportunities or any other way to support the programme, please get in touch.

We would like to thank our programme advisory panel:
Eliza Grosvenor, Gareth Gardner, Jane Lam, Kes Tchaas-Eccleston, and Siraaj Mitha.

FAQ

  • The programme is open to young people that will be aged 20–30 on 1st April 2025, from backgrounds which are underrepresented in architecture, photography, and the wider creative industries (full eligibility criteria are listed in the application form).

    Mentorship sessions will be held in London, so successful applicants must live in or close to Greater London from Spring 2025–Spring 2026.

    This opportunity is open to individuals only, please do not apply as a group.

  • We have an alternative application form which allows applicants to upload video or voice recordings in place of written answers here.

    If you have any other access needs which may affect your application to the programme, or you have any questions about how we will be able to accommodate your needs if you are selected for the programme, please drop us a message at info@mass-collective.com and we’ll be in touch to address your needs as best as we can.

  • This year, four candidates will be accepted onto the programme. Around twelve shortlisted candidates will be interviewed ahead of the final decision.

  • Not necessarily, but you should have some form of creative work to show (this can be from inside or outside of college/university/your job), and be able to demonstrate an interest in architecture and/or photography. A degree or any formal education in photography or architecture isn’t required either.

    Any work submitted in the application process will be assessed in terms of the ideas behind it, as opposed to technical ability, or direct relevance to architectural photography.

  • Yes, it’s fine to be unsure about your career path, or to have other plans outside of architectural photography. This opportunity is for people considering a career in the creative industries who have an interest in architecture and photography, and who would like to develop their architectural photography skills and portfolio to advance their career.

  • No, if you own any kind of camera that would be ideal, but not absolutely essential.

  • The grant must be used to fund the production and exhibition of your architectural photography project over the course of the year. This could include travel, equipment, printing, research material, or anything else that would support your project. It could also be used in part to pay for you to take a short time away from your everyday responsibilities and commitments, to focus on photography.

  • No, the programme is entirely free to participate in and apply to.

  • All mentees will need to commit to attending day-long masterclasses which will take place around once every two months, and an informal mentoring session with their individual mentor each month between the masterclasses.

    In addition to the programmed activities, you will need to spend some of your own time working on your photo project throughout the year. Your project should produce an exhibition outcome at the end of the programme, which will be exhibited in Spring 2026.

  • This can be tailored towards your personal requirements, but the outline plan is for informal mentoring sessions to take place at our Hackney studio, another agreed location, or online, around once every two months.

    Mentoring sessions will focus on supporting you in the production of your project, as well as more general guidance around some of the skills involved in a professional photography career. There will also be plenty of opportunities for reviewing your work together with your peer group on the programme, as they go through the course together with you.

  • At this stage no, a vague project idea is fine, and you will be able to change it later if you want to. Any candidates selected for interview will be asked to develop their project idea in a little more detail, and the chosen candidates will have help in finalising a more complete project idea and production plan.

    The only requirement is that the project is something that you haven't already produced in full, is based around photography of architecture/the built environment in some way, and it must be something that you can work on throughout the year mentorship programme.

  • The successful applicant’s completed projects will be exhibited together in Spring 2026, at a London location which will be announced later in the year.

  • Where possible, all sessions will take place in a public or shared space, and the individual mentors have all completed a DBS check.

  • We are always looking for new partners, supporters and collaborators — so if you are interested in supporting the programme, please get in touch with Mass Collective at info@mass-collective.com.

  • If you have any further questions at this stage, please get in touch with Mass .Collective at info@mass-collective.com.