In her artistic practice, visual artist Esther Hovers investigates how power, politics and control are exercised through urban planning and the use of public space. She was trained as a photographer but creates installations in which photographs, drawings, text and film play an equal part.

Esther Hovers has exhibited at Aperture Foundation in New York City; Lianzhou Photo Festival in China; and Foam Photography Museum of Amsterdam, et al. Her work has been published in The New York Times; The Washington Post; M – Le Magazine du Monde and Wired, among other publications.

In 2017 she was the winner of the Edward Steichen Award. In 2019 Hovers was an artist-in-residence at NARS Foundation (The New York Art Residency and Studios) in Brooklyn, New York.
She is based in the Hague, the Netherlands.




Several works on this website are generously supported by the Mondriaan Fund, 
the public fund for visual art and cultural heritage in the Netherlands.








Selected Exhibitions

2024

Are You Sure You Want to Delete It?
Kunsthaus NRW Kornelimünster, Aachen (DE)
27/04/2024 - 01/08/2024

Biennale Della Fotografia Femminile
Montova (IT)
08/03/2024 - 14/04/2024


2023

A Well-trained Eye
Visual Arts Center, University of Texas at Austin, (USA)
22/09/2023 - 02/03/2024

Harry Penningsprijs
Pennings Foundation, Eindhoven (NL)
06/05/2023 - 24/05/2023

The Right to be Forgotten (Solo)
Galerie BOHAI, Hannover (DE)
05/05/2023 – 28/05/2023


2022

Als Wäre Alles Für Immer
Kühlhaus Berlin (DE)
15/09/2022 - 01/10/2022

Festival Images Vevey
Château de l’Aile, Vevey (CH)
03/09/2022 - 25/09/2022

Data Streams
The Glucksman Art Museum, Cork (IE)
02/12/2021 - 13/03/2022


2021

Open Studios Nieuwmarkt
Amsterdam House of A&C (NL)
9 & 10/10/2021

Algorithmic Bias
[Senne], Brussels (BE)
30/09/2021 - 10/10/2021

ING: Resilience, A Personal Story
Kunsthal, Rotterdam (NL)
27/05/2021 -  19/09/2021

Track & Trace
Textile Museum, Kortrijk / Courtrai (BE)
13/03/2021 - 25/04/2021

Resistant Faces
Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich (DE)
27/11/2020 - 11/04/2021


2020

New Photography (Extended)
New Orleans Museum of Art (USA)
06/11/2020 -  06/06/2021

Mind Your Step
Zone2Source, Amstelpark Amsterdam (NL)
04/10/2020 -  29/11/2020

Public Space in times of Covid
Stroom, Den Haag (NL)
03/10/2020 -  01/11/2020

Vu.e de dos
Delta - Namur Art Center (BE)
23/09/2020 - 03/01/2021

Under Observation – Art of Retreat
Villa Merkel, Esslingen am Neckar (DE)
20/09/2020 - 15/11/2020

Nieuwe Ruimte(s)
Orange Art House, Brussels (BE)
03/09/2020 - 31/12/2020

Kutxa Kultur X Getxophoto
Tabakalera, San Sebastian (ES)
03/09/2020 - 27/09/2020

GETXOPHOTO Festival
Getxo, Basque Country (ES)
03/09/2020 - 27/09/2020


2019

Contrôle + Z
Centre d’Art GwinZegal (FR)
23/11/2019 - 23/02/2020

Lishui Photography Festival
Municipal Museum Lishui (CHN)
08/11/2019 - 12/11/2019

The Process Of Calculating One’s Position
NARS Foundation, Brooklyn, NY (USA)
15/11/2019 - 13/12/2019

SITUATIONS/Deviation
Fotomuseum Winterthur (CH)
18/10/2019 - 23/02/2020

Behind the Seen
NARS Foundation, Brooklyn, NY (USA)
30/08/2019 - 20/09/2019

Delirious Cities
Aperture Foundation, New York, NY (USA)
25/07/2019 - 29/08/2019

CONTACT Festival
Harbourfront Centre, Toronto (CA)
01/05/2019 - 31/05/2019

Journées Photographiques de Bienne
Bienne (CH)
10/05/2019 - 02/06/2019

YAA Zachtzinnig Radicaal
Arti et Amicitiae, Amsterdam (NL)
26/04/2019 - 26/05/2019

Prospects & Concepts
Mondriaan Fonds, Art Rotterdam (NL)
07/02/2019 - 10/02/2019


2018

Who’s In Control?
Fotodok, Utrecht (NL)
23/11/2018 - 24/02/2019

Lianzhou Foto
Foto Festival Lianzhou (CHN)
01/12/2018 - 03/01/2019

AE Festival
Postcity Linz (AT)
06/09 - 10/09/2018

Auckland Festival of Photography
At Fort Silo, Auckland (NZ)
31/05/2018 - 22/06/2018

Stadtansichten
Heidelberger Kunstverein
Heidelberg (DE)
05/05 - 08/07/2018

Krakow Photo Month  
Bunkier Sztuki Gallery of Contemporary Art (PL)
25/05 - 24/06/2018

Screening
BASE Milano,
Milan Digital Week, (IT)
15/03/2018 - 18/03/2018

I Am Here to Learn
Frankfurter Kunstverein (DE)
15/02/2018 - 08/04/2018


2017

Foam Fusion
Foam, Photography Museum
Amsterdam (NL)
09/06/2017 - 11/06/2017

EMOP - Solo Show
Centre d'art Dominique Lang
Dudelange (LU)
06/05/2017 - 09/06/2017
Download exhibition text (FR)

Diffusion International Photography Festival
Unit 15
Cardiff Bay (UK)
01/05/2017 - 31/05/2017

Watched ! Surveillance Art & Photography
C/O Berlin Foundation (DE)
17/02/2017 - 23/04/2017

Perfect Storm
NRW-Forum Düsseldorf (DE)
02/02/2017 - 12/03/2017

Glut: Images, information and excess
Holden Gallery, Manchester (UK)
16/01/2017 - 03/03/2017

New Photography II
ALAN Gallery, Istanbul (TR)
05/01/2017 - 05/02/2017


2016

Installation by Alberto Sinigaglia & Esther Hovers
Curated by Luca Massaro
LDS Gallery, Reggio Emilia (IT)
October 2016

Fotopub
Novo Mesto (SI)
08/01/2016 - 08/06/2016

Le Voyage à Nantes 2016
Cale2, Nantes (FR)
01/07/2016 - 28/08/2016

RESET at Salone del Mobile
Milan (IT)
12/04/2016 - 17/04/2016

Circulation(s) 2016
Centquatre-Paris, Paris (FR)
26/03/2016 - 26/06/2016

Launch Exhibition E-Book
Tribew Publishing House, Paris (FR)
25/03/2016 - 08/04/2016

OpZicht
Stroom, The Hague (NL)
03/17/2016 - 05/02/2016

Startpoint Selection
Arti et Amicitiae , Amsterdam (NL)
06/02/2016 - 13/03/2016

Now or Never
GEM, The Hague (NL)
31/10/2015 - 17/01/2016


2015

Unseen Photo Fair, Amsterdam (NL)
Represented by Galerie Ron Mandos @ Kunsthal Citroën,
18/09/2015 - 26/10/2015

Startpoint Prize Exhibition
National Gallery, Prague (CZ)
29/09/2015 - 01/11/2015

Steenbergen Stipendium
Dutch Photo Museum, Rotterdam (NL)
26/09/2015 - 01/11/2015

Shared Space,
Punt WG, Amsterdam (NL)
19/09/2015 - 11/10/2015

Best of Graduates
Galerie Ron Mandos, Amsterdam (NL)
08/08/2015 - 29/08/2015
Selected Press & Publications

Monography: False Positives
Published by Fw:Books

InVisible Culture, Rochester University NY
The New York Times (USA)
BE Magazine (DE)
Libération (FR)
Raw View (FI)
M, Le Magazine du Monde (FR)
The Washington Post (USA)
Pagina99 (IT)
Lens Culture
POP Kultur und Kritik (DE)
Wired.com (USA)
British Journal of Photography (UK)
YET Magazine (CH)
Courrier International (FR)
DazedDigital (USA)
De Correspondent (NL)
NRC Next (NL)



Awards & Residencies

2023

Nominee, Kunststiftung DZ Bank Scholarship (DE)

Nominee, Harry Penningsprijs (NL)

Mondriaan Fund, Art Grant (NL)


2022

Nominee, Gabriele Basilico Prize in Architecture and Landscape Photography (IT)


2021

Nominee, ING Photography Award (NL)

Shortlisted, Grand Prix Images Vevey (CH)


2020

Nominee, FOAM Paul Huf Award (NL)

Nominee, Gabriele Basilico Prize in Architecture and Landscape Photography (IT)


2019

Artist-in-Residence at NARS Foundation, Brooklyn, NY (USA)

Nominee, FOAM Paul Huf Award (NL)

Mondriaan Fund, Art Grant (NL)


2018

Nominee, Paris Photo - Aperture Foundation, First Photo Book Award (USA/FR)

Artist-in-Residence at ISCP Brooklyn, New York (USA)

Nominee, FOAM Paul Huf Award (NL)


2017

Winner, Edward Steichen Award 2017 (LU)

Stroom, Den Haag, Artistic Grant (NL)

Mondriaan Fund, Artist Grant (NL)


2016

Artist-in-Residence at Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin (DE)

Young Art Fund Amsterdam (NL)


2015

Winner, Startpoint Prize, National Gallery, Prague (CZ)

Winner, Steenbergen Stipend, Dutch Photo Museum, Rotterdam (NL)

Winner, Le Prix Tribew, Circulation(s), Tribew Publishing, Paris (FR)

Winner, Best of Graduates Photo Talent 2015, Galerie Ron Mandos, Amsterdam (NL)

'False Positives' - Shortlisted Unseen Dummy Award, Unseen (NL)

Winner, Photography Department Award, Royal Academy of Art, The Hague (NL)





Unless otherwise stated, this website and all content within this site are the property of
Esther Hovers and are protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws.


© 2019 Esther Hovers – www.estherhovers.com

© 2024 Esther Hovers