Born in 1981, Anaïs López (NL) is a visual artist based in Amsterdam, working with still and moving images. She graduated from the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague in 2006 and obtained her MFA in Documentary Photography from AKV | St. Joost in Breda in 2010, where she researched narrative structures and documentary strategies.

López develops long-term, research-based projects in which storytelling is central. Her practice is characterized by a multidisciplinary approach, combining photography, film, text, and installation. She is regarded as a distinctive voice in contemporary documentary, exploring new narrative forms that move between fact and fiction.

Her breakthrough project The Migrant received wide international recognition. The film was nominated for a Golden Calf at the Dutch Film Festival and won several major awards, including the Directors Guild NL Award for Best Digital Storytelling and the Zilveren Camera Award for Best Storytelling. The accompanying artist book was awarded Best Self-Published Book at Photo España and received the Bronze Medal for Best Book Worldwide at the Leipzig Book Fair.

Her recent project the Turtle and the Monk marks a new development in her practice, further expanding her interest in layered storytelling across media. The project has been supported by, among others, the Mondriaan Fund and the Netherlands Film Fund, and has been presented in several solo exhibitions, including the Japan Museum SieboldHuis in Leiden and the Maritime Museum in Amsterdam (2025–2026).

Her work has been exhibited internationally at museums and festivals, including Paris Photo (France), Fotofestiwal Łódź (Poland), Landskrona Photo Festival (Sweden), GetxoPhoto (Spain), Format Festival (United Kingdom), Lianzhou Foto Festival (China), and Photoville (New York, United States), as well as institutions such as the Nederlands Fotomuseum, Fotodok, Wereldmuseum, and the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (The Netherlands). Her work is held in collections including the Nederlands Fotomuseum, Fotodok and private collections.

In addition to exhibitions, she presents her work through live performances, ranging from intimate settings such as Magnum Foundation in New York to larger venues including Concertgebouw Brugge (Belgium) and Brakke Grond in Amsterdam.

She is co-founder and former director of Docking Station (Amsterdam), a platform supporting photographers in developing their projects through interdisciplinary exchange. Alongside her artistic practice, she teaches and gives masterclasses at art academies and regularly participates in portfolio reviews at international festivals, including Rencontres d’Arles, Unseen, Cortona On The Move, Fotopub, and Belfast Photo Festival.

López frequently collaborates with experts across disciplines, including designers, curators, and film producers, reflecting her strong belief in the value of collaboration within storytelling. 

In 2025–2026, her work is presented in major solo exhibitions of the Turtle and the Monk, including at the Japan Museum SieboldHuis in Leiden and the Maritime Museum in Amsterdam.