Denver Art Museum Presents: James Balog Earth Vision Awards
Image courtesy and © James Balog
The Denver Art Museum (DAM) proudly announces the launch of the James Balog Earth Vision Awards (JBEVA). The JBEVA are juried prizes intended to support photographers, from anywhere in the world, who are responding to today’s complex environmental issues. The awards will be given every two years and fund photographers documenting environmental change and humanity’s relationship with the natural world. Endowed by renowned environmental photographer James Balog and a circle of dedicated donors, the awards aim to provide significant financial support for lens-based artists whose past work and future aspirations demonstrate a sustained commitment to witnessing today’s complex ecological narratives.
The biennial awards feature a $40,000 First Prize and a $25,000 Finalist Prize. Selected works by the award winners will be added to the Denver Art Museum’s celebrated Photography collection.
“The Denver Art Museum has long been committed to celebrating artists who challenge us to look more deeply at our world,” said Christoph Heinrich, Frederick and Jan Mayer Director of the DAM. “Through the immense generosity of James Balog and our generous donors, the James Balog Earth Vision Awards allow us to go further, not only by honoring exceptional talent, but also by actively investing in their crucial work. Bringing the vital visual narratives into our permanent collection ensures they will remain a part of our shared cultural memory for generations to come.”
“Photography has a singular power to bear witness to ecological change, to shape collective memory and to challenge how humanity engages with the natural world,” said Eric Paddock, curator of Photography at DAM. “Powerful environmental photographs happen when artists take the time to understand their subjects truly and to know the stories they want to tell. That takes patience and commitment, and it’s what we want to support. This award is about giving photographers the financial backing to follow their instincts. We want to see honest, thoughtful work and we’re thrilled that the museum can partner with artists to make that work more visible.”
“Innovative image-makers are finding it difficult to obtain meaningful levels of funding for major projects”, says James Balog. “I would like to provide stellar and committed photographic artists with a new source of support to produce their work. Without creativity and imagination, culture withers–and I don’t want to see that happen. I hope that new narratives can help inspire a more balanced and sustainable relationship with nature.”
The call for entries officially opens on September 1, 2026, via the CallforEntry (Café) platform and will close on October 1, 2026. Submissions will be evaluated by a three-member panel of distinguished, internationally recognized photography professionals. The jury will only consider still photographs that engage the world directly; fabricated imagery, excessive color manipulation, and AI-generated content will be disqualified.
Winners will be publicly announced in January 2027, followed by a public presentation at the DAM to coincide with Denver’s Month of Photography in March 2027.
The James Balog Environmental Vision Award is made possible through The Balog Family Endowment at the Denver Art Museum, with funds from Linda and David Cornfield, Dave Atkinson, Heidi Garwood and Stuart Horowitz, Nancy Benson, Virginia Brown and Cody Smith, Laura and Rocky Henderson, and the Scintilla Foundation. Linda and David Cornfield provide additional support for acquisitions, and Gail and Bob Loveman.