Mandana Mahdavi is a documentary photographer based in the United States. Born to Iranian-German parents and raised in London, she spent formative years in Madrid and New York, drawing on a multicultural foundation. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Sciences and a Master’s in Management, and began her career in the visual arts before transitioning to photography. This interdisciplinary background informs her research-driven, narrative-focused approach. She is an alumna of the International Center of Photography’s Documentary Practice and Visual Journalism program, where she was awarded the Director’s Fellowship, and was selected for the Eddie Adams Workshop XXXIV. Her work has been recognized and supported by institutions including the International Center of Photography, Documentary Arts, the Lucie Foundation, The Alexia, The Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation, and the New York Foundation for the Arts. Mandana’s practice centers on long-form, community-engaged storytelling that explores identity, resilience, and social justice, uncovering the psychological undercurrents that define human experience.
Acheivements
2025 NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship in Photography, The New York Foundation for the Arts, USA
2024 Rita K. Hillman Foundation Fellowship, The Rita Hillman and Alex Foundation, USA
2024 New York Portfolio Review, USA
2023 The Alexia Grant (Finalist), The Alexia, USA
2022 Emerging Artist Scholarship (Honorable Mention), Lucie Foundation, USA
2021 Eddie Adams Workshop XXXIV, USA
2021 Documentary Arts Fellowship, Documentary Arts, USA
2021 Director’s Fellowship, International Center of Photography, USA
Education
2022 (Advanced) Documentary Practice and Visual Journalism, International Center of Photography, USA
2021 Documentary Practice and Visual Journalism, International Center of Photography, Online
2017 Professional Photography Course, London Institute of Photography, UK
2010 Management MSc, Bayes Business School, UK
2006 Biomedical Sciences BSc, University College London, UK
Selected Exhibitions
2024 Der Greif, Guest Room: Tina Campt and Keisha Scarville, Online
2023 Parallel Horizons, Chashama, USA
2023 Faculty and Staff Showcase, International Center of Photography, USA
2022 Shifting Selves, International Center of Photography Museum, USA
2021 This Was the Year That Was, International Center of Photography, USA
2018 Free Range Shows, The Old Truman Brewery, UK
Selected Features
2025 NYFA, ‘Introducing the 2025 NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellows, Finalists, and Panelists’, August 2025
2023 Musee Magazine, ‘Parallel Horizons: An International Photography Collective Exhibition in Chelsea’, October 2023
2023 Blind Magazine, ‘A New Collective is Born in New York’, September 2023
2023 Visura, ‘Parallel Horizons features nine international artists navigating landscapes of transformation’, September 2023
2023 Artdoc, ‘Parallel Horizons’, September 2023
2023 The Alexia at Newhouse/Syracuse University, ‘A Look Back: The Alexia 2023 Winners’, May 2023
Selected Publications
2023 PhotoVogue, Featured Photographer
2022 Shift Magazine, Featured Photographer
Talks
2023 Artist Talk at the Parallel Horizons Exhibition, Chashama, moderated by Alexey Yurenev