Suniko Bazargarid, 30, Featured in CULTURED's 2026 Young Photographers List
At just 30 years old, Mongolian documentary photographer Suniko Bazargarid has been named one of the 14 artists on CULTURED magazine's Young Photographers list for 2026. Residing in Ulaanbaatar, she focuses on capturing ephemeral moments and has received honors such as the Arnold Newman Scholarship and a residency at Baxter St at CCNY in 2025. In a recent interview, Bazargarid shared her instinctive photography style, emphasizing how our viewpoints can expose our true selves. Her work delves into themes of belonging, land resilience, and border impacts. While initially personal, she finds significance when her art connects with others. Influenced by Richard Serra, she aspires to evoke similar emotions. Other photographers highlighted include Alec Dai, Brian Karlsson, Arielle Gray, Ben Jastremski, and Conall Kearney.
Key facts
- Suniko Bazargarid is a 30-year-old documentary photographer based in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
- She is featured in CULTURED magazine's 2026 Young Photographers list, which spotlights 14 artists aged 30 or younger from around the globe.
- Her images often observe surroundings from the outside, catching only a flash of a figure or a lively scene from afar.
- She received Baxter St at CCNY's 2025 residency and the Arnold Newman Scholarship from the International Center of Photography.
- Her work explores how places define us, how borders and bureaucracies limit movement and identity, and the resilience of land.
- She addresses fears of belonging, having grown up in between places, and describes her work as living in that gap.
- She cites Richard Serra's giant slabs of curved steel as a major influence, hoping someone feels that in her work someday.
- Other photographers in the 2026 list include Alec Dai, Brian Karlsson, Arielle Gray, Ben Jastremski, and Conall Kearney.
Entities
Artists
- Suniko Bazargarid
- Richard Serra
- Alec Dai
- Brian Karlsson
- Arielle Gray
- Ben Jastremski
- Conall Kearney
Institutions
- CULTURED
- Baxter St at CCNY
- International Center of Photography
Locations
- Ulaanbaatar
- Mongolia