François Hébel nominated as new Artistic Director
In office from November 1, 2025
On October 1, 2025, during celebrations marking the tenth anniversary of its opening, CAMERA’s Board of Directors announced François Hébel as the institution’s new Artistic Director.
Hébel will officially take office on November 1, 2025, succeeding Walter Guadagnini, Artistic Director since 2016, who in recent years has consolidated and expanded CAMERA’s role, making it a benchmark for photography both nationally and internationally.
With this designation, CAMERA consolidates its identity and opens a new phase of development, strengthening its international projection.
François Hébel
Born in France in 1958, François Hébel is an influential figure in the international photography scene.
He was Director at Large of the International Center of Photography in New York (2024/2025) and Director of the Fondation Henri Cartier-Bresson in Paris (2018–2022), where he oversaw the relocation and expansion of the headquarters and the creation of major exhibitions in collaboration with international museums and institutions.
From 1986 to 1987 and then from 2001 to 2014, he directed Les Rencontres de la Photographie in Arles for fifteen editions, relaunching it and transforming it into the world’s most important festival dedicated to photography.
Previously, from 1987 to 2000, he was Director of Magnum Photos Paris and International, consolidating the role of the agency founded by Robert Capa and Henri Cartier-Bresson and guiding its editorial and financial transformation.
Hébel was also Vice President of the Corbis agency, founded by Bill Gates (2000/2001), and co-founded numerous international photography festivals and projects, from Mois de la Photo du Grand Paris to the Foto/Industria festival in Bologna, from Photo Spring in Beijing to initiatives in Delhi, Kyoto, and Johannesburg. He has curated exhibitions for institutions such as Palazzo Grassi, Grand Palais, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, and numerous international festivals.
His career, which began at the Fnac photo galleries in Paris in the 1980s, spans over 45 years of experience in the production of exhibitions, books, catalogs, and educational projects.