Monica Allende is a curator, artistic director, consultant, and educator. She is currently curating The Blue Skies Project, a multidisciplinary initiative with artist Anton Kusters. Her work has been showcased at prestigious venues, including the V&A, UNESCO, Museum Angewandte Kunst, Rencontres D'Arles, and The Photographer's Gallery in London. Additionally, she curates the annual exhibition of the Sony World Photography Awards at Somerset House in London and is collaborating with Laia Abril on a new project focused on Women Political Prisoners.
From 2019 to 2022, Allende served as the Artistic Director of the Landskrona Foto Festival and was the Artistic Director of the GetxoPhoto International Image Festival from 2017 to 2019. She curated the exhibition "Light" during Photo London 2021 at Peckham24, was the director of the FORMAT17 International Photography Festival, and has worked with WeTransfer and Canon as a consultant and artistic director.
Allende contributes to strategy and exhibition programming for CAMPO.lat, a digital educational online platform in Latin America, and collaborates with the VII Foundation on its academic and mentorship programs.
Her experience includes producing and teaching creative labs for various organizations, such as FIFV in Chile, Proyecto Imaginario in Argentina, ScreenLab in London, and Taskheil in Saudi Arabia. She has also conducted the Mentorship Business Programme for the University of Sunderland, workshops for Internazionale in Ferrara, the WPP workshop in Angola, Magnum Professional Practice, and the Grain and Format "East Meets West" Programme, among others.
Previously, Allende was the Photo Editor at the Sunday Times Magazine, where she launched Spectrum, an award-winning photography section.
Dedicated to nurturing both new and established talent, Allende nominates and judges numerous photography awards and artists' residencies. She also advises on curatorial practices and serves on the Boards of Trustees and advisory boards of The Photographer's Gallery in London and the Deutsche Börse Foundation.Allende advises on curatorial practices and serves on the Boards of Trustees and advisory boards of The Photographer’s Gallery, London, and the Deutsche Borse Foundation.