Dis/Placed

Ara Oshagan(b. 1964), is a photographer and installation artist adressing issues of displacement, identity and memory. Among the best-known Armenian documentary photographers in the world, he has presence in multiple photographic spaces. His work has appeared in leading galleries and newspapers. His best-known works include a ground-breaking series on Armenian Genocide survivors published in The Los Angeles Times and critically- acclaimed first monograph Father Land published by powerHouse books in 2010. In 2016, he published his second monograph, Mirror: about diasporic creative spaces and processes. Oshagan is also an installation artist with recent major projects in Armenia and Los Angeles. In 2015, Oshagan was selected as one of 100 ＂Leading Global Thinkers＂ by Foreign Policy Magazine in Washington DC. He has exhibited his work worldwide with solo exhibitions at the LA Municipal Art Gallery, the Downey Museum of Art and the Armory Center for the Arts in Pasadena. With awards from the Santa Fe Center for Visual Arts, Photolucida and the Armenian National Committee, Oshagan has also received grants from Open Society Institute, the California Council on the Humanities, Center for Cultural Innovation, Los Angeles City Department of Cultural Affairs and AFFMA Film Foundation. Oshagan has presented his work at the Annenberg Space of Photography, International Center of Photography in NY, TEDx Yerevan, and academic conferences. Oshagan was born in Beirut and is the son and grandson, respectively, of famed Armenian writers Vahe and Hagop Oshagan. Oshagan resides in Los Angeles. He is fluent in English and Armenian.