The year 2026 marks a defining moment for Roberto Strano, the acclaimed documentary photographer from Caltagirone, Sicily, who has swept the international stage with a historic triple victory at the Photojournalism Prize (PJP) and a further honor with the Premio Agorà.
The Photojournalism Prize, founded by Hossein Farmani (also the creator of the renowned Lucie Awards), is one of the most selective and prestigious awards in editorial, documentary, and investigative photography. For the 2026 edition, Strano achieved an unprecedented triple crown by securing all three major recognitions for his project “Sul filo del mondo” (On The Edge of The World): Shortlist (Official Selection), Finalist (Absolute Finalist) and Public Choice Award Winner (Winner of the Public Vote), accompanied by a €1,000 cash prize.
The official announcement and award ceremony took place live at the Ostuni Foto Festival, where the judging panel — composed of world-renowned photography experts — praised Strano’s profound storytelling.
Sul filo del mondo is a powerful visual essay exploring precarity as an existential condition in the Balkans and the Caucasus. Strano ventured into homes and workplaces across Bosnia, Kosovo, Montenegro, the Republika Srpska, Croatia, Serbia, Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Albania, documenting a generation born from the rubble of the past. His subjects are young people walking a thin line — suspended between the heavy legacy of fathers marked by conflict and the desire for a Europe that feels geographically close yet still unreachable.
Through deep, rigorous black-and-white photography and meticulous fine-art printing, Strano restores extraordinary dignity to these suspended lives — lives where tomorrow is both an uncertainty and a painful search for identity.
The official PJP certificate, signed by Hossein Farmani (Founder, PJP) and Hannah Lillethun (Program Director, PJP), confirms that Roberto Strano has been awarded Shortlist status in the 2026 edition for his entry On The Edge of The World, bearing the motto “Recognizing Excellence in Photojournalism.”
Fabio Roccuzzo, Mayor of Caltagirone, celebrated the achievement:
“I am overjoyed by the prestigious recognition obtained by Roberto Strano, the result of his great and increasingly acknowledged photographic skills, combined with extraordinary sensitivity. For Caltagirone it is a great honor, and for Strano a well-deserved, significant attestation of his talent.”
Just days after the PJP triumph, Strano received another honor. On Saturday, July 4, 2026, he was awarded the Premio Agorà 2026 during a televised evening at Agorà Stupor Mundi in Cava d’Ispica. The event was presented by Massimiliano Casto, Director of Canale 74, and featured guests from the Federiciani Literary Cafés.
The poster for the event — a striking black-and-white portrait by photographers Laura Burgaletta and Nicola Leone — shows Strano in a pinstripe jacket, camera in hand, against a blurred brick backdrop, with the inscription “PREMIO AGORÀ 2026 Roberto Strano Fotografo.”
Strano himself shared his gratitude:
“I’m really happy about this recognition and it makes me very pleased to see that my path and my shots leave a mark. A sincere thank you to the organization for thinking of me, and thank you all for following me.”
A professional photographer based in Caltagirone (Catania), Roberto Strano has built an international career spanning decades. His major reportage work includes covering the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, an investigation into sex tourism in the favelas spanning nearly three years, the terrorist attack at La Goulette port in Tunis, and extensive documentation across the Balkans.
His work has been published in Der Spiegel, Zoom, Photo, Corriere della Sera, Avvenire, and many other international outlets. His photographs are held in museums and private collections, including the Museum of Modern Photography in Modena. He has directed photography for several films — including L’albero della noce and La corsa per la vita by Fabio Cillia — and appears as a protagonist in La pelle della bellezza by Pietro Sabatino.
His published books include Guardami dentro (2007), Strade senza ritorno (2018), Compagni di viaggio (2019), and Storie di Sud (2024) — the latter presented at Spazio5 in Rome in February 2026, featuring a preface by Pietro Collini and contributions from Ferdinando Scianna, Maria Attanasio, and others.
2026 is undoubtedly the year Roberto Strano solidified his position among the most significant voices in contemporary international photojournalism.
Written by Joanna Longawa
Photo credits by Roberto Strano
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