Jonathan Funk

● Nominees 2026

○● Jonathan Funk ist freiberuflicher Fotograf aus Mannheim, Deutschland. In seiner Arbeit konzentriert er sich auf dokumentarische Langzeitprojekte sowie redaktionelle Reportagen und Porträts. Geprägt von seiner Erfahrung in der Sozialarbeit widmet er sich soziokulturellen und politischen Themen. In eine Arbeiterfamilie hineingeboren, entwickelte er seine Bildsprache zunächst autodidaktisch. Heute studiert er Dokumentarfotografie und arbeitet für Medien wie ZEIT, SPIEGEL und Süddeutsche Zeitung. Seine Arbeit ist ein fortlaufender Prozess, Fragmente miteinander zu verbinden und Raum für das Übersehene zu schaffen. In seinen Projekten verfolgt er das Ziel, zu einer differenzierteren visuellen Kultur beizutragen; eine, die Komplexität über Eindeutigkeit und Kontext über Geschwindigkeit stellt.

 Hannover / Mannheim, Deutschland
 Website

Checkpoint at the military airport of the Islamist transitional government in western Aleppo, Syria. One year after the change of power in Syria, the Islamist interim government under Al Sharaa launches a large-scale military offensive in January 2026 and, with the support of Turkey, captures the Kurdish districts in northern Aleppo. 08.01.2026, Aleppo, Syria © 2026 Jonathan Funk One year after the change of power in Syria, the Islamist interim government under Al Sharaa launches a large-scale military offensive in January 2026 and, with the support of Turkey, captures the Kurdish districts in northern Aleppo. 08.01.2026, Aleppo-Syrien.©2026 Jonathan Funk

Following the announcement of the ceasefire, residents are returning to their neighborhoods in Sheikh Maqsood. About ten buses arrive in the afternoon, where they are greeted by music and an Syrian PR campaign. Most residents, are not in the mood to dance. Many Kurds decline small welcome gifts and gestures and quickly leave the area. Thousands are fleeing out of fear of being oppressed again in the recaptured territories. 13.012026, Aleppo, Syria, © 2026 Jonathan Funk

As the front line continues to shift northeast following the fighting in Aleppo an attempt is made on to hold a closed-door trial in which members of HTS are to be interrogated in connection with the massacres in Latakia. The defendants are welcomed into the courthouse without handcuffs. During the trial, I am forced to delete pictures. 15.01.2026, Aleppo-Syria © 2026 Jonathan Funk

Aymad Naiyeh and his son Ibrahim at Aleppo University Hospital. According to his father, Ibrahim was walking around when he was hit by a drone that Syrian forces were trying to steer toward an SDF truck. The 14-year-old was seriously injured. Ibrahim's father still wears the blood-stained sweatpants he wore two days ago when he took his son to the emergency room. 10.01.2026, Aleppo-Syria. © 2026 Jonathan Funk

A tree marked by bullet holes in the Kurdish district of Sheick Maqsood. During and after the conquest of the Kurdish districts by Syrian forces, accusations of war crimes against Kurds are repeatedly being made. Once again, thousands who had long been rooted here are fleeing. 13.01.2026, Aleppo - Syria. © 2026 Jonathan Funk

Hanan Othman. Due to the fighting in his neighborhood, he and his family flee to Afrin, where they find help and shelter in a Mosque. Hanan, a father of six, points to his bare feet: “I don't even have socks or shoes,” There was no time to pack. 09.01.2026, Afrin-Syria. © 2026 Jonathan Funk

At night, it is pitch dark in Ashrafiyeh, one of the two Kurdish-controlled districts of Aleppo. Shortly after its capture by Syrian forces, aid organizations distribute bread and water to the population. Before the final battles for the two Kurdish districts, large parts of the population were cut off from electricity, water, and supplies. 11.01.2026, Aleppo-Syrien. © 2026 Jonathan Funk

The battles for the Kurdish-administered neighborhoods marked the beginning of a large-scale Syrian offensive, during which large parts of northeastern Syria were captured a week later. After the battle with guns comes the battle for the media narrative. While this photo was taken, a Turkish TV Team is staging a shoot just a few meters away from me with local children. January 13, 2026 Aleppo, Syria, © 2026 Jonathan Funk

The predominantly Kurdish district had been under the control of Kurdish forces since 2012 and functioned for years as an autonomous enclave in the civil war before government troops took de facto control in early January 2026. Due to the recurring conflicts, the neighborhoods are significantly underdeveloped compared to the rest of the city. 13.01.2026, Aleppo-Syria, © 2026 Jonathan Funk

A patient poses on his bed for an anonymized portrait at the Ibn Khaldoun Psychiatric Hospital in Aleppo. After years of civil war, more people are coming to the hospital on the outskirts of Aleppo to seek help. While people at the hospital hope for a better future, the sound of explosions could once again be heard in the distance. January 11, 2026, Aleppo, Syria. © 2026 Jonathan Funk

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