Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, in 1952 to a Dutch father and an Argentine mother, Diana Blok spent her early years in various Latin American countries before settling in Amsterdam in the 1970s. With her camera as her constant companion, she embarked on a personal journey to explore her origins and identity. A self-taught photographer, Blok began with self-portraiture, immersing herself in her immediate surroundings while visualising myths, dreams, human relationships and the subconscious. Her work reflects a profound ability to see her own story mirrored in that of others.

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In societies where a single sexual norm dominates and alternative expressions are suppressed, Blok creates striking, evocative portraits. Gender and imagination are central to her theatrical photography and film installations. For Blok, photography is not just a medium, but a tool for delving into her inner world of imagination and examining the diverse realities of human existence. During the COVID pandemic, her gaze turned inward again, resulting in wonderful registrations of leaves as metaphors for life.

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Blok's work mainly portrays individuals for whom gender, cultural identity and sexual orientation are fluid. During her travels to Turkey, Brazil and the Caribbean, among other places, she gained the trust of people living on the margins of society as well as the social elite. Her images are both confrontational and balanced, poetic yet charged. Recent projects continue to demonstrate her remarkable versatility, including a monumental video installation that challenges historical and cultural notions of gender.

​​​​Text: Hripsimé Visser