Myrto Papadopoulos has spent nearly two decades developing long-form visual narratives that investigate themes of identity, belonging, and the evolving relationship between people and land. Rooted in cross-disciplinary research and immersive fieldwork, her practice critically engages with historical consciousness, collective memory, and cultural resilience.
Her projects often unfold over several years, integrating original photography, social practice, archival materials, video, and text. Through this layered approach, she challenges dominant narratives and offers alternative perspectives. Working closely with diverse communities, she explores how land informs cultural identity and personal histories, weaving connections between past and present. Her work also navigates the boundaries between fact and fiction, questioning how stories are constructed, transmitted, and reinterpreted over time.
Originally from Athens, Greece, Papadopoulos studied painting and photography at the School of Visual and Applied Arts at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. In 2006, she pursued further studies in documentary photography at the International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York, where she was awarded a scholarship.
Her work has been commissioned and published by major organizations and media, including the Smithsonian, The New York Times, Time Magazine, National Geographic, Bloomberg, and Dior, among others. She has presented her work in various contexts, including cultural institutions, academic settings, and public forums such as TEDx, the European Parliament, and Princeton University’s Global Seminar in Athens. Her projects have been exhibited internationally in solo and group exhibitions at leading cultural institutions and photography festivals.
Papadopoulos was an IMEDD Fellow (2019, 2021), with the support of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and has been nominated for the Prix Pictet, the Magnum Foundation Grant, and the Leica Oskar Barnack Award.
/ Selected Exhibitions
-Photometria International Photography Festival/ The Silversmithing Museum 2025 – Upcoming Solo
-L’Abbaye Royale de l’Epau – “Spirits Unseen” – France, 2024
-MOMus Thessaloniki Museum of Photography – “HerStories” Photographic Practices 1974-2024
-Art Residency Photoxenia – Mamidakis Foundation – Crete, Greece, 2024
-The Benaki Museum – “Spirits Unseen” – Solo, Athens, Greece, 2023
-PHmuseum Days 2023 – with work from Eleu sis – Bologna, Italy, 2023
-National Museum of Modern Art EMST – “Foodprint” exhibition, Athens, Greece, 2023
-“Rites of Passage”, Recontres de la Jeune Photographie Internationale, Niort, France, 2023
-The Benaki Museum – Mystery 29 “The Raw Museum” – Eleusis Cultural Capital of Europe, Greece,2023
-Athens Photo Festival – official section, The Benaki Museum, Athens, Greece, 2022
-Athens Photo Festival – curator of “The Journal Exhibition”, The Benaki Museum, 2020
-Mediterranean Flux – Cultural center of Metropolis, Naxos, 2020
-Athens Photo Festival – official section, The Benaki Museum, Athens, Greece, 2019
-PHotoESPAÑA, Madrid – OFFLAND, “Spirits Unseen” official section, Madrid, Spain, 2019
-TBLISI Photo Festival, Tbilisi, Georgia, 2018
-IDFA Doc Lab, Amsterdam, 2017
-The Benaki Museum – People On The Move, Athens, Greece, 2016
-MedPhoto Festival, Crete, Greece, 2016
-Tositsa Foundation, Athens – Solo exhibition, Athens, Greece, 2015
-Lishui Photography Festival, China, 2015
-EU Parliament – Solo exhibition, Bruxelles, Belgium, 2014
-Flash Forward Exhibition, Toronto & Washington DC, 2013
-Athens Photo Festival – Solo exhibition, Athens, Greece, 2011
-Dumbo Arts Festival – New York, 2011
-LOOK3 Between Festival, Virginia, USA, 2010
-Cedefop Photo Museum International Award – Archeological Museum of Thessaloniki, Greece, 2010
-DUMBO Arts Festival, New York, USA, 2010
-Festival Circulation(s) – Festival de la Jeune Photographie Européenne, Paris, France, 2009
-Musée du Quai Branly, 2009
/ Selected Lectures
2024 – Athens Photo Festival 2024 / Head of LAB”Sculpting Narratives” alongside Alexandra Rose Howland & Cloé Kerhoas Özmen
2015 – Present – Hellenic Centre for Photography, Athens, Greece
2024 – Guest Lecturer at the photo department of The Athens School of Fine Arts, ASFA, Athens, Greece
2024 – Key Lecturer and Head of Laboratory “Mystery 65 Reframe Elefsina” & Eleusis Culture Capital of Europe 2023, Elefsina, Greece
2023 – Guest Lecturer for Princeton University Global Seminar program, Athens, Greece
2023 – National Museum of Modern Art, EMST – The Footprint Project, Athens, Greece
2023 – The Home Project – The Foodprint Project, Athens, Greece
2023 – 6 x 6 Photographic Center, Limassol, Cyprus
2018 – British Council & Unicef – Visual Narratives & The refugee crisis
2017 – Arcadia University – On Journalism & Visual Narratives
2016 – Positive Voice & AMAKA – The Attendants & The Reflower Project
2016 – Mercy Corps -Visual Narratives & the Refugee Crisis
2015 – Save the Children – Visual Narratives & the Refugee Crisis
/ Artist Visits & Talks
2023 – TedNTUA, Athens
2023 – IRIDA VISIONS, Athens
2023 – IRIDA VISIONS /Moria, Athens
2019 – Athens Photo Festival, Athens
2018 -International Documentary Festival, Thessaloniki
2016 – Humanity in Action, Athens
2014 – Tedx Talk Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki
2014 – EU Parliament , Brussels
/ Selected Interviews
2023 Mataroa Magazine/ 2023 Greek National Public Radio/ 2023 Simio Art/ 2023 Messy Ethics in Human Rights Work-Published by UBC/ 2022 ERT National Broadcast Television “SYN GINAIXI” Documentary series on female profiles/ 2022 Collective Eye Podcast/ 2018 Greek National Public Radio – DOC on Air “The New Plastic Road”/ 2018 ERT National Broadcast Television TEKMHRIA ELLINISMOU “The New Plastic Road/ 2018 National Geographic Redefining Gender Roles (early stages of “Spirits Unseen”) 2017/ National Geographic / Inside the Harrowing Journeys of Refugee Mothers/ 2017-SPJ International/ 2016 VICE -on The Attendants/ 2015 – DIE ZEIT/ 2014 – ZEIT ONLINE
Greek media outlets: EL Culture, Ta Nea, Kathimerini, K Magazine, To Vima Magazine, Enet, CLOSE UP Magazine