Ligia Popławska (1994) is a Polish artist, photographer and researcher based in Antwerp, with a background in art history. Working at the intersection of ecology and anthropology, her practice weaves speculative narratives, tracing how human and more-than-human ecologies and senses shape and respond to environmental change. Her current research delves into forest ecologies, forest spirituality, climate grief, solastalgia, the disappearance of senses, animal perception and interspecies communication.
After graduating in Art History from the University of Gdansk, Popławska continued her education at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp, having completed BFA and MFA in Photography with great distinction. Her work has received awards including the Decade of Change Series Award by the British Journal of Photography, the PhMuseum Days Award and Photography Prize funded by the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp. She is a laureate of .tiff 2022 and member of FUTURES Photography nominated by FOMU. Popławska exhibited in solo shows at Bienal’23 Fotografia do Porto, ENCONTROS DA IMAGEM, PhMuseum Days, and duo or group exhibitions at FOMU, Valerie Traan Gallery, De Brakke Grond, InCadaques Photo Festival, Helsinki Photo Festival, among others. She is a receipent of Emerging Talent Grant from the Flemish Government.
Apart of the artistic practice, Ligia Popławska works commercially as a photographer. In 2021-2023 she taught photography at the Jewellery Design, Gold and Silversmithing Department, Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp. She curated and wrote for a photography platform Intimate Structures. Since September 2024 she is a researcher in the Art & Ecology research group at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp. In between commercial and artistic projects, she is managing IN-DEPENDANCE by IBASHO, a photography gallery in Antwerp.
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