This time, the honour goes to “Popihuise” by Vuyo Mabheka, published by the French publishing house Chose Commune, which was awarded the 2025 Les Rencontres d’Arles Book Prize in the Authors category, chosen from a shortlist of no fewer than 90 titles.

Established at the founding of the photography festival in the city of Arles, the Rencontres d’Arles Book Awards champion the remarkable creativity of photographic publishing each year, and aim to be one of its most prominent and active advocates.

But let’s turn to the winning book. In Afrikaans, the word pophuis refers to a popular type of dollhouse rooted in South African native culture. In his debut publication, Vuyo Mabheka develops the Popihuise series from this childhood game, using cut-outs from rare photographs of himself as a child. He creates interior scenes in which he appears—sometimes alongside imaginary friends, portrayed by members of his community whom he secretly photographed, and at times in the company of an imagined, faceless father figure.

Printed in full by Musumeci, the book’s 56 pages and 23 plates showcase the vivid colours of Mabheka’s photographs, the soft hues of his pastel drawings, and the tactile textures of his collages. The production is elevated by a section-sewn Bodonian hardcover with trimmed edges.

The 2025 Les Rencontres d’Arles Book Prize celebrates not only the narrative and visual strength of Vuyo Mabheka’s work, but also the excellence in print and editorial craftsmanship that has long defined Genoud and Musumeci’s dedication to quality.