Leah King-Smith facts for kids

Leah King-Smith is a talented visual artist from Australia. She is a descendant of the Bigambul people. She also teaches at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Brisbane. Leah is famous for her unique photo compositions.

Her most well-known work is the 1991 series Patterns of Connection. This series has been shown in many places. It has been exhibited both in Australia and in other countries. Earlier in her career, Leah King-Smith explored ideas about identity. She looked at how a person's identity can change over time.

Early Life and Background

Leah King-Smith was born in Gympie, Queensland. Her mother was Indigenous, and her father was white. This mixed background made Leah interested in cultural differences. She explored these ideas through her photography.

Education Journey

In 1986, Leah King-Smith earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. She studied photography at Victoria College in Melbourne. Later, she continued her studies at the Queensland University of Technology. She completed a Master of Arts degree in 2001. In 2006, she earned her PhD in visual arts from the same university.

Photography Career Highlights

Leah King-Smith started showing her art in 1985. This was while she was still studying for her first degree. She has continued to exhibit her work regularly since then. In 1988, her art was part of a group show. It was called The Thousand Mile Stare: A Photographic Exhibition. This exhibition took place at the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art in Melbourne.

The Patterns of Connection Series

Leah King-Smith's famous series, Patterns of Connection, came out in 1991. It was shown in Melbourne and Sydney in 1992. Later that year, it traveled to London. It was part of the Southern Crossings show.

Leah started this project with grants from the Stegley Foundation. The grants were for the Koori Oral History Program. She was meant to create a picture book. It would feature one hundred photos of Aboriginal people from the 1800s. These photos were taken by European photographers.

However, Leah felt a strong connection to the old portraits. She wanted to make the project more personal. So, she decided to create "photo-compositions." These artworks combine the old 19th-century photos. She added her own color photographs of the Victorian landscape. She also used paint in her works.

This new approach changed how Aboriginal people were seen. It showed them in a more positive and spiritual way. The artworks brought together landscape and people. This showed how important the land is to Aboriginal people. It also helped remove negative ideas of control from the original photos.

Leah's partner, Duncan King-Smith, is a sound designer. He created a soundscape to go with the artworks. It was a recording of the Australian bush. This helped make the exhibition more engaging for visitors. The Patterns of Connection series was very popular. It toured widely in Australia and overseas. It was shown in the United Kingdom and North America.

Other Exhibitions and Commissions

In 1998, Leah King-Smith's work was chosen for an exhibition. It was called In the Realm of Phantoms – Photographs of the Invisible. This show was held in Germany.

She was also selected for the Venice Biennales in 1997 and 1999. These are very important art exhibitions. Her works were part of Metamorphosis and Beyond Myth - Oltre il Mito.

Leah has created many visual artworks. She often uses her art to explore her research ideas. She has had many solo and group exhibitions since 1985.

Before the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Leah received a special request. The National Portrait Gallery asked her to create four portraits. These portraits were of Indigenous athletes. She used her special photo-composition technique for them.

In 2014, she was asked to create a public artwork. It was for the Translink North Lakes Bus Station in Brisbane. In 2016, her work was in the Over the Fence exhibition. This show featured contemporary Indigenous photography.

Leah King-Smith's art is held in many important collections. These include the National Gallery of Victoria and the National Gallery of Australia. Her works are also in private collections and some international collections.

Academic Career

Leah King-Smith is very focused on fairness in teaching and learning. She works to encourage different cultural ideas in research. She wants to make sure that everyone's cultural background is respected.

Leah has a long career as a photo and digital media artist. She has done many different projects. These include solo shows, group shows, and working with communities. She has also worked on dance performances and theater productions. Her art has been used for book covers and story illustrations. She has even made experimental films and videos. Currently, she uses 3D animation in her collaborative art projects.