Acknowledgement of Country

Presented by Photo Australia, Melbourne (www.photo.org.au) and Autograph, London (www.autograph.org.uk), PHOTO LIVE is a series of 10 online conversations between artists and curators from Australia and the UK that will explore ideas of identity and belonging in the context of human rights, representation and social justice. This program highlights the importance of centring black, Indigenous, feminist, queer and other marginalised voices and storytelling in photography.

The ninth talk in the series features Australian / South Sudanese artist Atong Atem in conversation with Dr Zoé Whitley, Director of Chisenhale Gallery, London.

About the Artist

Atong Atem is an Ethiopian born, South Sudanese artist and writer living in Narrm/ Melbourne. Atem’s photographic practice explores migrant narratives, postcolonial practices in the African diaspora, and concepts of identity, home, and liminal space. Her dynamic portraiture references widely, from Malick Sidibe and Seydou Keita to science fiction writer Octavia Butler. She was awarded the inaugural National Gallery of Victoria and MECCA M-Power scholarship in 2018 and the Brisbane Powerhouse Melt Portrait Prize in 2017.

Photo Australia produces PHOTO International Festival of Photography in Melbourne and across regional Victoria. Delivered in collaboration with over 40 cultural institutions, museums, galleries and universities, the Festival features free exhibitions, outdoor displays and artist commissions, alongside events and education programs. The Festival invites artists, curators, writers, academics and audiences to interrogate the major issues of our time through a central theme. The theme for PHOTO 2022 is ‘Being Human’ and the Festival will run from 29 April to 22 May 2022.

Autograph ABP was founded in 1988 in London to support black photographic practices. Between 1988 and 2007, Autograph worked as an agency to initiate projects in gallery spaces, museums, at festivals or in public sites. It developed expertise in influencing policy and practice and was able to demonstrate alternative models of making and sharing creative work produced by artists from the UK and abroad. In 2007, Autograph applied for charitable status and moved to a purpose-built permanent home in Rivington Place, Shoreditch, which provides an important London showcase for its annual public exhibitions, a dedicated learning studio and a place to welcome the many institutions, informal groups and individuals with whom we make and share cultural projects.

1854 Media is a multi-award-winning digital media organisation with a global community including millions of photographers, arts lovers and international brands. Its portfolio includes British Journal of Photography, the world’s oldest photography title (est. 1854), and its awards are among the most viewed photographic exhibitions in history.