Avery Norman's 'Expecting to Fly' Wins LensCulture Critics' Choice Award

Texas-born photographer Avery Norman has been named a winner of the 2026 LensCulture Critics' Choice Award. Her series, 'Expecting to Fly,' explores themes of youth, girlhood, and American identity through meticulously crafted images that bridge memory, desire, and selfhood. The work was featured in a Guardian gallery, with Norman providing personal commentary on each photograph. One image depicts braids belonging to her mother, braided together on the floor of her grandparents' living room. Another, taken in Georgia, captures a moment after a QuikTrip coffee run, with friends smoking in a parked car. A third shows a friend climbing a tree in thrifted heels, ripping her dress. Jim Casper, editor in chief of LensCulture, praised the series for its intentional control and sly subtext, noting the tension adds to its mystery. Norman's self-portrait at her grandparents' house in east Texas includes guns brought by cousins. A roadkill deer in upstate New York, a motel with a waterfall lobby, and a friend's back tattoo of a poem by Marceline Desbordes-Valmore are also featured. The series concludes with a winter scene at Caddo Lake, which spans Texas and Louisiana. Norman's artistic journey is characterized by personal narratives and self-mythology, translating individual experiences into compelling visual metaphors. The award was announced in 2026, with details available on the LensCulture website.