Summary of previous work and experience
photos online
Born in Montevideo Uruguay 1952
Lives in Amsterdam since 1974
Diana Blok spend her youth in Uruguay, Colombia, Guatemala and
Mexico.. Since 1974 she has established her home base
in Amsterdam. As a diaspora artist she travels regularly,
returning to her roots.
She is a self thought photographer, practicing professionally
since 1977 . Her work has taken form in both staged photography
and documentary. Each has served a different purpose at another
time and in the past fifteen years she tends to combine both in a
subtle and elegant fashion.
Developing concepts in the studio she then steps out into the world
to find completion.
Growing up in Colombia and Guatemala both during the time of their
civil wars and traveling extensively in between, she had the
opportunity to see a lot of the world and its diversity. Because of
all the travels, it seems like she was never anywhere long enough
to become completely familiar with her surroundings . A sense of
belonging to one place is unknown, home is everywhere
and nowhere.
Photography was an extension of this feeling. Questions around
human behavior, race, color, gender, sexuality and religion are her
search.
Thru the camera she seeks to find answers and gain a better
understanding of herself and the human condition.
”The viewers voyeuristic gaze dissolves into active participation,
for hers are images in which we are able to recognize something
of ourselves, while in our thoughts we can (re)construct our
own story accordingly”.
Adi Martis
.
Besides exhibiting projects worldwide since 1980 she teaches
Fine Art Photography at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague,
NL. as well as masterclasses in Finland, Sweden, Mexico and France.
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2009 See Through Us / Melkweg Galerie / Amsterdam
2008 Secrets from the Archive/ Galerie Baudelaire/ Antwerpen
2007 Family project / Turner Caroll Gallery/ Santa Fe/New Mexico
2005 Premiere / Gallery Vieleers / Amsterdam
Paradise in Disguise / Gallery Melkweg / Amsterdam
Possible Paradise/ a journey to Suriname
CBK Zuidoost, Amsterdam ( Holland)
FRAMES met Monica Blok Galerie Kuntur Amsterdam
2001 AY DIOS Curacao Corazon Curacion
Tentoonstelling Rotterdam (Holland)
Ay Dios
Artoteek Zuidoost, Amsterdam
Ay Dios
Porto Novo Gallery, Nijmegen
1999 Adventures in Cross-Casting
Teatro San Martin, Buenos Aires (Argentina)
1998 Adventures in Cross-Casting / Theater Instituut Amsterdam
COLLECTIONS
Rijksdienst Beeldende Kunst, Den Haag (Netherlands)
Polaroid Collection, Boston, (USA)
Photography Museum, Charleroi (Belgium)
Biblioteque National, Paris (France)
Tokyo Metropolitan Museum, Tokyo (Japan)
Collection Bert Hartkamp (Holland)
Museum for Photography, Sittard (Holland)
Dunhill Dutch Photography (Holland)
Uwe Schmidt Collection, Cologne (Germany)
Horbach Collection (Germany)
Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (Holland)
Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, Buenos Aires (Argentina)
Holly Solomon ( New York)
PUBLICATIONS
2009 SEE THROUGH US, portraits and stories of gay women/men
and transsexuals in Turkey
Exhibitions International distribution
2005 POSSIBLE PARADISE/ a journey to Suriname
text Annette de Vries
Publishers Funds for Amateur Arts and Performing Art
2001 AY DIOS / Curacao Corazon Curacion
Text Diana Blok and Jan Brokken
Publishers Veenman/Voetnoot/Paradox
1998 Adventures in Cross-Casting
Text Don Bloch
Co-production Theater Instituut and Veenman en Zonen
1990 BLOOD TIES AND OTHER BONDS
Text Elena Poniatowska
Publisher Contact Amsterdam in co-production with Stemmle
1983 INVISIBLE FORCES / Diana Blok and Marlo Broekmans
Publisher Bert Bakker, Amsterdam Second edition 1985
Writer Carol Whetstone
