2026 Mono Awards: Black-and-White Photography Winners Announced
Winners of the 2026 Mono Awards in black-and-white photography have been revealed. Carly Goldsmith secured the People category with her piece 'Childhood', which captures her children in the afternoon light. In the Animals category, Brooke Pyke was honored for 'Fever', depicting mobula rays in Baja, Mexico. Andy Zakeli's 'De-Escalation' earned him the top spot in Places, showcasing Sydney's Gadigal Station. Ross McLennan came in second in People with 'Jin', part of 'Ortho Surfers', while Bruce Westerman took third in Places with 'Echoes of the Silk Road'. Dragoljub Zamurovic and Keiko Ellis finished fourth and fifth in Places, respectively. In Animals, Leanne Silver was the runner-up with 'Sniffing for Prey', and Debbie Hartley placed fifth with 'Rhino Landscape'. Carly Earl and Phil Duval ranked fifth and fourth in People, respectively.
Key facts
- Carly Goldsmith won the People category for 'Childhood', an unposed backyard photo of her two youngest children.
- Brooke Pyke won the Animals category for 'Fever', photographing around 100 mobula rays in Baja, Mexico.
- Andy Zakeli won the Places category for 'De-Escalation', shot at Sydney's Gadigal Station during a Tafe student excursion.
- Ross McLennan was People runner-up for 'Jin', shot on 8x10 Ilford Ortho film after running out of panchromatic film.
- Bruce Westerman took third place in Places for 'Echoes of the Silk Road', depicting Nubra Valley in Ladakh with Diskit Monastery and Bactrian camels.
- Leanne Silver was Animals runner-up for 'Sniffing for Prey', a young female polar bear on an ice floe in the Arctic Circle.
- John Peters took third place in Animals for 'f/0.58', a female Deinopis subrufa net-casting spider photographed after moulting.
- Cushla Monk was Places runner-up for 'Cathedral of Steel', capturing Sydney Harbour Bridge in fog after researching weather and sunrise conditions.
Entities
Artists
- Carly Goldsmith
- Brooke Pyke
- Andy Zakeli
- Ross McLennan
- Bruce Westerman
- Debbie Hartley
- Dragoljub Zamurovic
- Carly Earl
- Sarah Alzoubi
- Emma Parker
- Cushla Monk
- Leanne Silver
- John Peters
- Phil Duval
- Fiona Bowring
- Jill
- Keiko Ellis
Institutions
- The Mono Awards
- Tafe
- Mt Fuji Heritage Centre
- national Islamophobia register
Locations
- Baja
- Mexico
- Sydney
- Gadigal Station
- Nubra Valley
- Ladakh
- Diskit Monastery
- Bouddi
- Arctic Circle
- Fujinomiya
- Shizuoka
- Mt Fuji