"Indian-born, UK based artist and educator with over a decade of experience exploring social justice issues through a lens-based practice. I focus on gender-based violence, ethical storytelling, and institutional representations of marginalised narratives. My work combines interdisciplinary research, traditional journalism, and trauma-informed visual art, with projects addressing domestic abuse and subaltern histories from South Asia." (Sujata Setia)
EDUCATION
KING'S COLLEGE LONDON Master of Arts (M.A.) International Relations (Sep 2009)
LADY SHRI RAM COLLEGE Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) History (Sep 2003)
ST. XAVIER'S COLLEGE PG Diploma Journalism (Sep 2006)
SELECTED PROJECTS AND RESEARCH
A THOUSAND CUTS (Ongoing) Interdisciplinary lens-based project on domestic abuse in South Asian communities. In collaboration with Shewise (UK-based charity) • Conducted qualitative research and collected testimonies from 40 survivors of abuse, documented through written, oral, and photographic archives. • Organised art therapy workshops and public panel discussions with survivors, mental health experts, journalists, doctors, lawyers and policymakers. • Addressed issues of sensationalism and trauma in media representation, showcased internationally in exhibitions across the UK, India, Japan, Germany, Italy, and South Korea.
KASHMIRI WOMEN ARTISANS PROJECT (Ongoing) Exploring the agency of Kashmiri embroidery artisans within a conflict zone In collaboration with Dr. Kamini Gupta, King's College London - funded by King’s College Culture Grant. • Researching the socio-political history of Kashmir and the impact of traditional artisan spaces on women’s self-determination. • Employing oral histories, feminist discourse, and historical documentation to contextualise the lives of Kashmiri women artisans. • Co-producing an interdisciplinary artwork including photographs and embroidery to transform the research into a visual tapestry.
THE GEOGRAPHY OF SELF (2025) • A dual-panel, hand-cut paper installation created in collaboration with students at King’s College London, as part of an ESRC funded project, VEM - Visual Embodied Methodologies Network. The project explores campus experiences of sexual harassment, intimacy, consent, and boundaries. This work was commissioned by King’s College London (Dr. Jelke Boesten).
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Lens-Based Artist UK, 2014 - Present • Developed socially engaged photography and interdisciplinary art projects addressing gender-based violence, trauma, and cultural narratives. • Exhibited in prominent venues globally, including Francis Crick Institute (UK) G5A (Mumbai), City Hall (London), British Library (London), and Somerset House (London), Lishui Museum (China). • Featured in major publications including Observer | CNN | Guardian | Forbes | The Times | BBC | Huffington Post | The Daily Mail | ABC NEWS | Vanity Fair | RTL TV | Metro Faculty, EFTI School of Photography Madrid, Spain, 2017 – 2019 • Taught courses on ethical storytelling, visual representation, and documentary photography. Guest Lectures, Ongoing • Guest lectures at King’s Business School (King’s College London), University of Greater Manchester, Birmingham City University, Winchester School of Art, and Falmouth University Talks/Pabels (Selected), Ongoing • TEDx Talk (Speaker) • Head On Photo Festival (Australia) — Panel: Narratives of Womanhood • Association of Photographers (AOP) × Fujifilm, House of Photography — Talk: The Art of Breaking into Professional Photography • GRAIN Projects — The State of Photography Symposium (Speaker/Panelist) • City Hall, London — Panel Discussion: Art and Gender-Based Abuse
AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS
“Winner - Wellcome Photography Prize” 2025
“Recipient - Realisation Grant” - Center for British Photography 2025
“Co-Recipient - Rapid Response Fund” - Economic And Social Research Council 2025
“Winner - Format25, Genesis Award and Lishui Award” - Format Festival 2025
“Winner - Critics’ Choice” LensCulture 2024
“Winner - Creative Category” - Sony World Photography Awards 2024
“Recipient - Creative Collaboration Fund” - King’s College London 2024
“Recipient- Artist Fund” - POCC 2023
“Artist in Residence A.R.I.A Hub - WERESTART 2023
“Trace Mentorship Program Mentee” – 2022
“Winner - Female in Focus” - British Journal of Photography 2022 “Photographer of the Year” Tokyo International Foto Awards 2021
“Open Award Gold Winner” Association of Photographers 2021
“Portrait Award Winner” The Independent Photographer 2021
“Portrait Award Winner” Indian Photo Festival 2021
SELECT EXHIBITIONS
MUDEC, Milan, Italy TIMES SQUARE, New York, USA Wellcome Trust, London, UK Francis Crick Institute, London, UK G5A, Mumbai, India City Hall, London, UK British Library, London, UK Format Festival, Derby, UK Lishui Photography Festival, Lishui, China Africa Foto Fest, Ivory Coast, Africa Busan Photo Festival, South Korea Fotofestival Lenzburg, Switzerland Somerset House, London, UK Biennale della Fotografia Femminile, Mantova, Italy Headon Photo Festival, Sydney, Australia Photofusion, London, UK DOOH Feature - “A Thousand Cuts” POCC x Clear Channel, UK CLB Gallery, Berlin, Germany Triveni Kala Kendra, Delhi, India Shibuya Cultural Center Owada, Tokyo, Japan House of Lucie, Kashan, Iran House of Lucie, Budapest, Hungary Fujifilm House of Photography, London,
UK MEDIA
Observer | CNN | Guardian | Forbes | The Times | BBC | Vogue | Huffington Post | The Daily Mail | ABC NEWS | Euro News | Vanity Fair | RTL TV | Metro COMMUNITY AND ADVOCACY WORK • Art Therapy Workshops, *WERESTART* – Facilitation for refugees and asylum seekers in the UK • NHS Campaign– Created media content to encourage cervical cancer screening among BAME women.