Nicolò Brugnara (b. 1996, Italy) is a documentary photographer with a background in Environmental Science and Yoga teaching. His academic and photographic path has taken him through Central and Southeast Asia, Oceania, Africa, and South America.
He creates intimate, often raw images that invite a closer look at the relationships between people, animals, and the ecosystems they share. While witnessing the impacts of inequality and environmental degradation, he began focusing on stories of neglected communities and ecological collapse.
Since 2024, he has been working on Held in Motion, a long-term project about migration across India. An earlier series, The City That Does Not Exist, looks at how spiritual traditions shape everyday life and collective resilience. With a quiet and attentive eye, Nicolò shares narratives that might otherwise be missed, encouraging reflection rather than judgment.
He is fluent in Italian, English and Spanish and has a working knowledge of Hindi.
Education
2024 Yoga teacher training, Rishikesh, India
2021 M.Sc. in Sustainable International Agriculture, University of Göttingen, Germany
2018 B.Sc. in Environmental Science, University of Padova, Italy
Solo Exhibitions
2023 Sulphur slavers turned into human donkeys, International Month of Photojournalism, Padova Italy
2023 The Samrong’s school, Meta House, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Group Exhibitions
2025 Maha Kumbh Mela, Hardcore Street Collective, Ahmedabad, India
2023 Reportage exhibition, The Glasgow Gallery of Photography, Glasgow, Scotland
2023 Motion exhibition, The Glasgow Gallery of Photography, Glasgow, Scotland
2023 Travel Photographer of the Year, Worldwide
Awards and grants
2025 Exposure One Award, 2º Place, Event category
2023 Young Talent, IMP, Padova, Italy
2023 Travel Photographer of the Year, Special mention
2020 Junior Scientist Scholarship, DAAD, Germany
Languages
Fluent in: Italian, English, Spanish
Working on: Hindi/Nepali