PIA JOHNSON

  • Pia Johnson is a photographer and visual artist, whose practice emerged out of a concern with issues of cultural identity and difference, stemming from her mixed background of Chinese and Italian-Australian descent. These themes have underpinned her interest in memory, cultural spaces and performance – where she often features within her works – to investigate notions of transcultural identity, belonging and otherness through photography, moving image and installation. Recently Pia has developed further work on themes of mobility, migration and diasporas of care within domestic and environmental landscapes. Her work has been exhibited across Australia and internationally; and is collected in private and public collections including the National Gallery of Victoria.

    Known as one of Australia’s distinctive performance photography and portrait artists, Pia has commissions from all the major and small to medium performing arts organisations in Australia. Pia has been a finalist in many photography awards, including the National Photographic Portrait Prize, Olive Cotton Award, Josephine Ulrick and Win Schubert Award, Bowness Prize, Ravenswood Australian Womens’ Art Prize, Iris Award, Maggie Diaz Photographic Prize for Women amongst others, and is regularly invited as a guest speaker and artistic advisor for a range of organisations. In 2023 Pia received the inaugural State Library of Victoria Kerri Hall Fellowship for Performing Arts and was the artist in residence at Immigration Museum. Pia teaches at RMIT University School of Art and is the Master of Photography Program Manager and co-lead on the CAST Migration + Mobility + Art research group.

    Pia holds a Bachelor of Creative Arts (Visual arts) and Diploma of Modern Languages (Mandarin) from the University of Melbourne, and has a PhD (Fine Arts) from RMIT University.

    Pia lives and works on Dja Dja Wurrung Country, with her husband and daughter. She acknowledges and pays respect to the traditional owners of the land - always will be Aboriginal land.

  • 9 March / 7 April 2019
    PIA JOHNSON
    Cusp

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    13 February / 27 March 2016
    PIA JOHNSON
    The Widening Gyre

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    11 July / 04 August 2013
    PIA JOHNSON
    Finding Yourself At Home Alone

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