Counter Foto – A Center for Visual Arts is a Bangladeshi visual-arts and photography institution based in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Established in 2012, it offers photography education through diploma programmes, workshops, and masterclasses, and organises exhibitions, lectures, and public programmes. The institution has been described by the Sigrid Rausing Trust as "an international photography school founded in Bangladesh in 2012" that brings together practitioners from diverse fields including sociology, filmmaking, economics, anthropology, and academic research.
History
Founding
Counter Foto was established on 23 November 2012. It was founded by photographer Saiful Huq Omi, with Andrew Biraj as co-founder. Din M Shibly served as the first Head of Academics until July 2015.
The institution began with a single classroom, one office room, and a kitchen. Saiful Huq Omi designed the institute's architectural structure himself, inspired by the Sri Lankan tropical-modernist architect Geoffrey Bawa. A second campus in Uttara was later established, which has functioned as a studio space, cafe, and cultural hub.
Development
By 2016, Counter Foto celebrated its fourth anniversary with a five-day programme at the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Dhaka, inaugurated by the Netherlands Ambassador to Bangladesh.
In 2021, The Business Standard reported that Counter Foto had been "growing steadily" over its first eight years. By 2026, New Age reported that the institution had taught more than 1,500 students across 50 programmes, organised approximately 37 international masterclass workshops, and that its students and alumni had participated in about 90 international exhibitions and won around 350 international awards.
Education
Counter Foto offers photography education through various programmes. These include a Post Graduate Diploma in Photography (affiliated with the National University, Bangladesh), a two-year Professional Diploma in Photography, and a one-year diploma programme. The curriculum emphasises documentary photography and visual storytelling.
In 2016, Australian photographer Patrick Brown conducted a workshop on documentary photography and British photographer CJ Clarke led a workshop on multimedia storytelling as part of Counter Foto's fourth-anniversary celebrations. The institution also organises portfolio reviews, lectures, and seminars.
Counter Foto's "Kaalo" initiative has hosted art talks with numerous international photographers, including National Geographic photographer Tomasz Tomaszewski, who spoke at the Mirpur campus in February 2020.
Exhibitions and public programmes
In 2016, as part of its fourth-anniversary celebrations, it presented "Freedom", an exhibition featuring works by seven Bangladeshi and three foreign photographers, including Ahmed Rasel, Arko Datto, Monirul Alam, Ronny Sen, and Colombian photographer Carlos Saavedra. The exhibition was held at the Faculty of Fine Arts of Dhaka University and Chhobir Haat.
In 2017, Counter Foto collaborated with the EMK Center on "Frames of Identity", a project in which ten female students from the University of Dhaka participated in a photography workshop. Counter Foto curated an exhibition of their work titled "The World as I see", displayed at the EMK Center from 20 to 31 May 2017.
In March 2026, Counter Foto organised a daylong book exhibition at its Mirpur campus, featuring photo books by eighteen students. In December 2025, it presented "Raktim Probahe, Chitra-Chetonay Chobbisher Gana Abhyuthan", a group exhibition by the seventh batch of its two-year professional diploma programme depicting the July–August 2024 student-led mass uprising in Bangladesh.
In October 2025, Counter Foto hosted a talk by three members of the Kaali Collective, a group of six women photographers formed in 2018, who discussed their seven-year practice of documentary and socially engaged photography.
Social and community engagement
Counter Foto has been involved in socially engaged visual-arts practice. In September 2024, it collaborated with Bangladeshi Journalists in International Media (BJIM), Internews Bangladesh, and Moner Bondhu to organise "Breathing Out Burden", a mental health support event for journalists covering the student movement.
The institution's students and alumni have worked on projects addressing political violence, displacement, and human rights. Saiful Huq Omi's photographic work on the Rohingya people, supported by a Magnum Foundation Emergency Fund grant and an Open Society Institute emerging photographers grant, has been exhibited internationally.
Faculty and visiting practitioners
Counter Foto's faculty has included Bangladeshi photographers and photojournalists such as Ahmed Rasel, who has mentored students on documentary projects. The institution has hosted visiting practitioners including Pieter Ten Hoopen, Patrick Brown, CJ Clarke, and Tomasz Tomaszewski.
Students and alumni
Counter Foto students and alumni have received international recognition. In 2023, student Md Zobayer Hossain Joati became the first Bangladeshi photographer to receive the Alexia Grant for his project "We live to Fight". He was a student in the Professional Diploma in Photography programme at Counter Foto.
In 2025, alumnus Jubair Ahmed Arnob was named Student Photographer of the Year in the Sony World Photography Awards for his project "The Place Where I Used to Play", documenting urbanisation's impact on Dhaka's landscapes. Counter Foto students have also won prizes in photography competitions including "Break the Circle".
Reception and significance
The Sigrid Rausing Trust, which has provided grant support to Counter Foto, describes the institution as bringing together "young motivated people – sociologists, photographers, dramatists, filmmakers, economists, anthropologists, city planners, painters, engineers, and academic researchers – working together to create a dynamic base for learning, creativity and social change".
The Business Standard has characterised Counter Foto as "an oasis designed by a photographer" and noted its architectural distinctiveness within Dhaka's urban landscape. New Age has reported on the institution's educational impact, noting the scale of its student body, international masterclasses, and the awards won by its students and alumni.