Artist Yuki Kihara in situ at her solo exhibition entitled ‘Paradise Camp’ (2020/2022) presented at the Aotearoa New Zealand Pavilion in the Arsenale, as part of the 59th Venice Biennale, 2022. Photo by Luke Walker.

Yuki Kihara (b. 1975) is a Japanese-Sāmoan conceptual artist working and living in Sāmoa. Her interdisciplinary practice challenges dominant historical narratives and their socio-political persistence in contemporary culture. She incorporates Sāmoan aesthetics and cultural codes through performance, sculpture, film, photography, and curation.

Kihara gained prominence following her solo exhibition entitled ‘Living Photographs’ (2008) presented at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Manahatta New York held at the Lila Acheson Wallace Wing in the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art featuring highlights of her interdisciplinary art practice, followed by the acquisition of the works by the museum for their permanent collection. 

Kihara’s works have been presented in numerous exhibitions, including the Gwangju Biennale (2023); Aotearoa New Zealand at the 59th Venice Biennale (2022); Aichi Triennale (2022); Bangkok Art Biennale (2018); Honolulu Biennale (2017); Asia Pacific Triennial (2015 and 2002) and Sakahàn Quinquennial (2013) to name a few. 

In 2022, Kihara represented Aotearoa New Zealand at the 59th Venice Biennale with her solo exhibition entitled ‘Paradise Camp’ curated by Natalie King presented in the Arsenale to critical acclaim. The ‘Paradise Camp’ exhibition toured the Powerhouse Museum, Gadigal land Sydney, Australia (2023); Saletoga Sands Resort & Spa, Upolu Island, Sāmoa (2024); Sainsbury Centre, Norwich, United Kingdom (2025) and The Whitworth, Manchester, United Kingdom (2025). The ‘Paradise Camp’ exhibition is accompanied by a major catalogue edited by Natalie King and published by Thames and Hudson.

Kihara’s work is held in over 30 permanent collections including The Museum of Modern Art; The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; British Museum; The National Museum of World Cultures, The Netherlands; The National Museum of Scotland; Sunpride Foundation, Hong Kong; Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art; National Gallery of Australia, Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts, Taiwan; and Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand to name a few. 

In 2024, a film documentary entitled ‘Paradise Camp: Homecoming’ co-directed by Yuki Kihara and Keiran McGee produced by Keiran McGee was awarded development funding from Screen Australia and the Australia International Documentary Conference. Additionally, ‘Paradise Camp: Homecoming’ was selected to officially pitch at Sunny Side of the Doc – a documentary market in La Rochelle, France in the same year. Film production is currently underway in Sāmoa. 

Kihara’s works, performances and projects has been presented, among others, at Zendai Museum of Modern Art, Shanghai; Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts; Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art, Fukuoka; Gwangju National Museum; Centre for Heritage, Arts and Culture, Hong Kong; Goodman Gallery, Cape Town; Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand, Brazil; Bozar Centre for Fine Arts, Brussels; Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin; Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin; Sophiensaele, Berlin; Kampnagel, Hamburg; Theatre Freiburg; Rautenstrauch-Joest Museum, Cologne; Forum Freies Theate, Düsseldorf; Roxy Basel, Basel; Trondheim Kunstmuseum; Royal Academy of Arts, London; Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Cambridge; National Museum of Scotland; National Museum of Poznan; Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Paris; Christie’s Paris; Musée Maritime de La Rochelle; Danish Film Institute, Copenhagen; Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen; Museum Volkenkunde, Leiden; Troppenmuseum, Amsterdam; Cultural Centre Francesca Bonnemaison, Barcelona; Centro Ricerca Arte Attuale, Verbania; National Gallery of Canada; Bishop Museum, Honolulu; Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco; Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, Arizona; Utah Museum of Fine Arts; Orange County Museum of Art; Allen Memorial Museum of Art, Ohio; Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre, Nouméa ; National Gallery of Australia; Australian National Maritime Museum, Sydney; Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, Sydney; 4A Centre for Contemporary Asia Art, Sydney; Campbelltown Arts Centre, Sydney; Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney; Powerhouse Museum, Sydney; Ian Potter Museum of Art, Melbourne; Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane; National Gallery of Australia, Canberra; Auckland War Memorial Museum Tāmaki Paenga Hira; Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki; New Zealand Maritime Museum Hui Te Ananui A Tangaroa; Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū; Artspace; City Gallery Wellington; Dunedin Public Art Gallery; Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand and the National University of Sāmoa. 

Kihara is a recipient of over 50 grants and awards including a recipient of the Art Laureate Award from the Arts Foundation of New Zealand Te Tumu Toi in 2021. Additionally, Kihara is a recipient of the Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa; Asia New Zealand Foundation; Association of Social Anthropology in Oceania; Goethe Institute; British Council; French Embassy in Aotearoa New Zealand; Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade of the Government of Australia; Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade of the Government of New Zealand and the United Nations Women to name a few. 

Kihara was a research fellow at the National Museums of World Cultures in The Netherlands from 2017 – 2022. Kihara is currently an affiliate of Ecological Art Practices – a research cluster led by THE NEW INSTITUTE Centre for Environmental Humanities (NICHE) at the Ca ‘Foscari University of Venice. 

As a curator, Kihara has curated several exhibitions, among others, including ‘Hand in Hand’ (2008) co-curated with Jenny Fraser featuring over 30 Indigenous queer artists across Oceania presented between Boomalli Aboriginal Arts Collective and Performance Space as part of the Sydney Gay Mardi Gras. ‘Hand in Hand’ later toured the University of Tasmania’s Plimsoll Gallery, Australia. Kihara is currently curating the touring solo exhibition of artist and scholar Katerina Teaiwa entitled ‘Project Banaba’ (2017-) commissioned by Carriageworks, Gadigal land Sydney. Additionally, ‘Project Banaba’ has toured MTG Hawke’s Bay Tai Ahuriri, Aotearoa New Zealand (2019); Te Uru Waitakere Contemporary Gallery, Aotearoa New Zealand (2022); and the Bishop Museum, Hawai’i (2023). ‘Project Banaba’ will be presented at the Chau Chak Wing Museum at the University of Sydney in 2025. 

Kihara is a co-editor alongside Dan Taulapapa McMullin for a publication entitled ‘Samoan Queer Lives’ (2018) featuring 14 autobiographical chapters from Fa’afafine & LGBTIQ+ Samoans based in Sāmoa, American Sāmoa, Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, Hawai’i & Turtle Island USA supported Creative New Zealand. 

Kihara is a co-director of Talanoa Arts Forum together with Tau’ili’ili Alpha Maiava. Talanoa Arts Forum is a Sāmoa-based curatorial agency setup to facilitate the weaving of infrastructure that support cultural and artistic exchange, between local and the international community in Sāmoa. Talanoa Arts Forum is a multidisciplinary cultural platform working with private and public entities to activate spaces for cultural production and promotion across all creative disciplines, spanning from heritage, visual arts, literature, film, fashion, dance, design, and music to name a few.

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