The Society of Photographic Education (SPE) conference in Atlanta, GA, on March 19–21, 2026, saw the debut of the first DSI Monochrome Award. We created this award after SPE Executive Director Toni Roberts was engaged in a discussion with Digital Silver Imaging on how to best highlight a photo educator whose work centered on black & white imagery and printmaking.
Andrea Zocchi, a partner at DSI, said, “This is Digital Silver Imaging’s way to support the educational community while featuring the vibrant art of black and white image making.”
The submissions for the award were judged by two prestigious jurors, Jess T. Dugan and Karen E. Haas. Jess T. Dugan is an artist and writer whose work “explores the complexities of personhood, relationships, desire, love, and family through photography, film, writing, and drawing.” Karen E. Haas is the Lane Senior Curator of Photographs at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Her extensive curatorial résumé makes her one of the most influential figures in contemporary photography.
The DSI Monochrome Award will be given to photographic educators who demonstrate excellence in black and white photography. The 2026 recipient received a $600 cash travel stipend to the Atlanta conference and a $2,500 certificate toward DSI Digital Silver® gelatin prints or high-resolution film digitization services. This enables recipients to make true silver gelatin prints directly from digital files or digitized film, from 8″x10″ to 40″x60″. Open to SPE community members serving as instructors, educators, or adjunct faculty, recipients will be selected based on quality and ability to use the medium in expressive, innovative, and/or thought-provoking ways.
And the winner! This first-ever award was won by Priya Kambli. She is a Professor of Art at Truman State University in Kirksville, Missouri. Kambli’s work explores the fragmentation of family, identity, and culture. She is the 2025 recipient of the Leica Women Foto Project Award, and her work also appears in A Yellow Rose Project.
An honorable mention went to Matt Eich, an Associate Professor at the Corcoran School of the Arts & Design at George Washington University. Eich creates commissioned work for a range of clients and is the publisher of the independent imprint Little Oak.PRESS.
An honorable mention was also awarded to Rachel Cox. She is an Associate Professor of Photography at the University of Iowa’s School of Art, Art History, and Design. The work Cox submitted examines the cultural stigmas associated with female infertility.
DSI Digital Silver Prints® are real silver gelatin (silver halide) black & white prints on fiber base paper, made from the fusion of digital technology and traditional exposure/chemical printing. We use a Lightjet 430 laser printer to expose light-sensitive Ilford silver gelatin paper up to 50″ wide, then process the exposed paper in liquid photo chemistry.
Thanks to all who submitted work and to SPE and their dedicated membership.