23–27 February 2026
In February 2026, the Todi Circle will expand beyond Europe for the first time. In addition to its annual event in Umbria, it will be convening in Johannesburg, South Africa for a special, new edition dedicated to African photography and visual culture. Hosted by the Inside Out Foundation this gathering continues the Italian Circle’s founding spirit to share ideas, question assumptions, and imagine new futures for the image.
Over the full week, The Todi Circle | Johannesburg will take place at the Roger Ballen Centre for Photography in Johannesburg, bringing together photographers, curators, writers, and diverse thinkers from across Africa, Europe, and the Americas, combining the hallmark format of the Italian Circle – morning & afternoon conversations and shared meals, evening events – with local site visits to Johannesburg’s most vibrant artistic and academic institutions.
This first African edition is hosted by Roger Ballen and the Inside Out Foundation, in collaboration with William A. Ewing (long-time co-director with Mario Santoro) of the Todi Circle. Together with Azu Nwagbogu and Elvira Dyangani Ose chairing the circle, they will guide a week of encounters exploring African photography-related issues and trends.
Participants include:
- Federica Angelucci Italy/ South Africa
- Yaëlle Biro France
- Adrien Bitibaly Burkina Faso/France
- Elvira Dyangani Ose Spain
- Zein Khalifa Egypt/UK
- Awa Konaté Denmark/UK
- Yvon Langué Cameroun/Morocco
- Catherine E. McKinley USA
- Same Mdluli South Africa
- Azu Nwagbogu Nigeria
- Francis Nii Obodai Provençal Ghana/Zimbabwe/Portugal
Also, during the week, the group will be taking time to meet notable people from the Johannesburg photo communities.
Like its Italian counterpart, The Todi Circle Johannesburg is not so much a conference, as a conversation – a space for reflection rather than presentation, for generosity over individualism, spontaneity over formality, and for shared inquiry into a vital medium that has done much to define our time.
Venue: Roger Ballen Centre for Photography, 2 Duncombe Road Forest Town Johannesburg. South Africa
