Arian Christiaens (b. 1981) is a visual artist who works with photography. She completed her Master’s degree at KASK & Conservatorium in 2004. At the heart of her practice lies an exploration of how personal identity is formed and interpreted: between photographer and subject, man and woman, parent and child, the self and the other. She works over extended periods with people from her immediate circle, with whom she shares an intimate bond. The family archive serves as both a source and a subject in this context. At the same time, she questions the image and the act of looking itself.

In 2019, Art Paper Editions (APE) published Xenia, an artist’s book featuring portraits of her sister, in which gender and identity take centre stage. The book was nominated for the Arles Photobook Prize. In Camera (2022), she juxtaposes her own relationship and imagery with those of her mother and father, and questions the traditional dynamics between man and woman and between photographer and model. The work was exhibited at FoMu, nominated for the PhMuseum Photography Grant, and published as an artist’s book by APE.