Her gallery debuted in 1987 with Nan Goldin’s Ballad of Sexual Dependency, and she showed artists working in a wide range of photographic techniques, including fashion photography by Annie Leibovitz, the surrealist imagery of Joel-Peter Witkin, and socially conscious work by Richard Misrach, Allen Ginsberg, and others. In 2018, she helped establish the nonprofit CASE Art Fund, employing photography to advocate for the human rights of children. In a press release, Ms.

Edelman said, “After 35 years of working with midcareer and emerging photographers, I’m thrilled to support them in a new way” by working with the MFAH. In addition to receiving a $50,000 unrestricted cash prize, the MFAH curatorial team will work with Mr. Martínez to select several of his photographs for the museum’s permanent collection.

Gary Tinterow, MFAH Director and Margaret Alkek Williams Chair, said that the MFAH photography collection of 38,000 objects “has embraced both emerging photographers and art that seeks to improve society by revealing injustice” since becoming a separate curatorial department in 1976. He continued, “The establishment of the Edelman Impact Award celebrates this history and supports artists who have dedicated their art to social issues.” Yael Martinez, “El Rio de la Memoriay Mis Hijas,” 2022 In his documentary photography, Mr. Martínez represents expressions of resilience in Mexican communities beset by organized crime violence.

His conceptual approach includes material manipulations such as sketching, scratching, and poking holes in the photographic prints. Jurors selected for the inaugural Edelman Impact Award were Lisa Volpe, MFAH Curator of Photography; Deborah Willis, Professor of Photography and Imaging at New York University; Susan Meiselas, a photographer and President of the Magnum Foundation; and Corey Keller, an independent photography curator. Learn more about the MFAH photography collection on the museum’s website.